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Lung microbes mediate spinal-cord autoimmunity

Lung bacteria modulate the activity of immune cells in the central nervous system in a rodent model of autoimmunity. This finding might shed light on the neuroinflammation associated with multiple sclerosis.
  1. Aubrey M. Schonhoff

    1. Aubrey M. Schonhoff is in the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.

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  2. Sarkis K. Mazmanian

    1. Sarkis K. Mazmanian is in the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA.

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Chronic, uncontrolled inflammation of healthy tissues can lead to damage and autoimmune disease. There is growing evidence that both autoimmunity and the development of normal immune responses in humans are linked to the microbiome — the community of trillions of microorganisms that colonize body surfaces. Most research so far has focused on bacteria living in the gut, with microbial communities in the colon being the most diverse and abundant. There is evidence1–3 that interactions between the microbiome and the brain have a role in some brain disorders and in complex behaviours such as sociability, although most such studies have focused on the gut–brain axis in animal models.

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Nature 603, 38-40 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-00468-x

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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