(ANSA) - ROME, OCTOBER 09 - In the future the transplantation of the intestinal microbiota (the set of bacteria that colonize our intestine) could become an elixir of youth: this is the promise that comes from an international study led by Claudio Nicoletti of the University of Florence, which also involves the universities of Milan and Pisa.
Published in the journal Microbiome, the research shows that young mice can literally age by transplanting the microbiota of older mice into their intestines.
After microbiota transplantation, bacteria that colonize the intestines of recipient mice turn to those present in the intestine of an elderly animal.
Parallel to this change in the intestine, even the brains of young mice seem to age suddenly, with changes evident especially in the hippocampus, the seat of learning and memory.
And in fact, young mice begin to behave like older animals mentally, showing significant worsening of learning and memory.
It will now be necessary to see, Nicoletti emphasizes, if on the contrary, transplanting the microbiota of animals at an early age into the intestines of elderly animals can restore 'youth' to the brains of the elderly, in short, if by acting at the intestinal level, the rejuvenation of cognitive functions can be achieved.
According to experts, there are good possibilities in this regard, because it is now increasingly clear that the gut and the brain are intimately connected to each other.
(HANDLE).