Fasting May Help Ward Off Infections, Study in Mice Suggests
upstart writes:
Fasting may help ward off infections, study in mice suggests:
Fasting decreased the signs of bacterial infection compared to fed mice, including nearly eliminating all intestinal tissue damage and inflammation. When fasted animals were re-fed for a day after their fast, there was a dramatic increase in Salmonella numbers and invasion into the intestinal walls, although the associated inflammation was still attenuated compared to normal. The results did not hold true when mice were exposed to Salmonella intravenously instead of orally, and analyses of the microbiomes of mice showed significant changes associated with fasting and protection against infection. Moreover, fasting did not fully protect germ-free mice -- bred to lack a normal microbiome -- from Salmonella, suggesting that some of the protection was due to fasting's effect on the microbiome. Experiments using the bacteria Campylobacter jejuni confirmed that the effect of fasting was not limited to Salmonella, with similar results seen.
[...] "Our research highlights the important role that food plays in regulating interactions between the host, enteric pathogens and the gut microbiome. When food is limited, the microbiome appears to sequester the nutrients that remain, preventing pathogens from acquiring the energy they need to infect the host. While more research is needed, fasting or otherwise adjusting food intake could be exploited therapeutically to modulate infectious diseases in the future."
Journal Reference:
Franziska A. Graef, Larissa S. Celiberto, Joannie M. Allaire, et al. Fasting increases microbiome-based colonization resistance and reduces host inflammatory responses during an enteric bacterial infection, PLOS Pathogens (DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009719)
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