Author: Vishnevskaya Karina
Editor: Kigbaeva Kamila
The researchers argue that the mechanism that activates the enzyme to feed microorganisms could be used to develop new diagnostic methods for detecting intestinal diseases. The human gastrointestinal tract is home to a large and diverse community of microorganisms, most of which are concentrated in the colon, where the number of bacterial cells is estimated at about 100 trillion.
The mucus lining the intestines is called mucin and is a family of high molecular weight glycoproteins containing acidic polysaccharides. They create a barrier between complex populations of gut bacteria and the body. Mucus protects human epithelial cells from both pathogenic microorganisms and normal microflora.
Scientists from the Universities of Birmingham and Newcastle have studied how one of the key enzymes involved in the nutrition of microorganisms functions. It turned out that the enzyme located on the outside of the bacterial cell uses mucin molecules as food, "capturing" them inside the bacteria. This is how nutrition occurs.
So, they examined the tissues of adults suffering from ulcerative colitis, colorectal cancer, and necrotizing enterocolitis in premature infants. By adding an enzyme to biopsy samples and staining glycans with a fluorescent dye, the researchers were able to obtain useful information about the structure of intestinal polysaccharides, and therefore about existing diseases. Scientists claim they can use these enzymes to better diagnose diseases at the earliest stages of development.
Source: https://naked-science.ru/article/medicine/ferment-v-kishechnike-mozhet-pomoch-v-sozdanii-novogo-biomarkera-boleznej
