Written by: Adriana Souto Pereira Nuncio Edited by: Esther Melamed This body organ has more neurons than the entire spinal cord and is not part of the central nervous system (CNS). What are we talking about? Yes, that is right, it is your gut, the body’s second brain! The concept of the gut-brain axis, a bidirectional connection between the brain and the gastrointestinal tract, is being actively studied, especially in the neuroscience field. Neurological disorders, such as depression, anxiety, stress, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, autism spectrum disorder and multiple …
COVID-19 and Its Sequelae on the Gut-Brain Axis
Written by: Shruthi Aravindan Edited by: Esther Melamed COVID-19 infection is often characterized by a cytokine storm which contributes to the high levels of inflammation. While COVID-19 is most commonly a respiratory infection, there are often symptoms that manifest in other parts of the body and in conjunction with multiple organ failure in severe cases. One of the often-overlooked effects of COVID-19 is on the enteric nervous system (ENS), which is composed of neurons that line the walls of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The gut microbiome is a collection of microbes that live in …
The Gut Microbiota and COVID-19 Severity
Written by: Nadia Siles Edited by: Esther Melamed For years now, we have known that our gut microbiota, the millions of microorganisms that inhabit our digestive tract, is primarily shaped by our diet, environment, and genes. The numerous interactions between our microbiota and our body are complex and bidirectional, to say the least. And in the past decade, mounting evidence has shown that our gut microbiota influences our immune system, as there appears to be a back-and-forth relationship between the gut microbiota and immune homeostasis in our body. Although SARS-CoV-2 primarily …