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Brain Microbiome in Fish

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December 27, 2024

Why in News?

A new study, published in Science Advances, shows that bacteria can not only make their way to the brain, they can thrive there.

  • Study species – Salmon and Trout.
  • Observation – Using DNA extraction and microscopic imaging, it was identified that bacteria were living in the fishes’ olfactory bulbs and other brain regions.
  • Evasion of blood brain barrier – Microbes possessed unique adaptations that helped them breach the blood-brain barrier.
  • Some produced molecules called polyamines that can open tight junctions in the barrier fluid
  • Others were able to evade immune responses or outcompete their rivals, ensuring their survival in the brain’s delicate environs.

Blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a tightly locked layer of cells that defend the brain from harmful substances, germs and other things that could cause damage.

Blood Brain Barrier

  • Adaptability of bacteria - Some bacteria seemed to have colonised the brain much before the blood-brain barrier had evolved to its present form.
  • Others likely travelled up from the gut or the bloodstream, continuously infiltrating the brain throughout the fishes’ lives.
  • Significance of the study – It opens the door to rethinking the brain’s microbiome in vertebrates, including humans.
  • If bacteria can thrive on fish brains, it’s possible they may do so on human brains as well.

Reference

The Hindu| Bacteria’s thriving in Fish Brain

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