Faculty of medicine, Bar-Ilan University, 1311502 Safed, Israel.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
FEMS Microbiol Rev. 2015 Jul;39(4):509-21. doi: 10.1093/femsre/fuu010. Epub 2015 Feb 19.
The new field of microbiome research studies the microbes within multicellular hosts and the many effects of these microbes on the host's health and well-being. We now know that microbes influence metabolism, immunity and even behavior. Essential questions, which are just starting to be answered, are what are the mechanisms by which these bacteria affect specific host characteristics. One important but understudied mechanism appears to involve hormones. Although the precise pathways of microbiota-hormonal signaling have not yet been deciphered, specific changes in hormone levels correlate with the presence of the gut microbiota. The microbiota produces and secretes hormones, responds to host hormones and regulates expression levels of host hormones. Here, we summarize the links between the endocrine system and the gut microbiota. We categorize these interactions by the different functions of the hormones, including those affecting behavior, sexual attraction, appetite and metabolism, gender and immunity. Future research in this area will reveal additional connections, and elucidate the pathways and consequences of bacterial interactions with the host endocrine system.
微生物组研究领域研究多细胞宿主内的微生物以及这些微生物对宿主健康和幸福的诸多影响。我们现在知道，微生物会影响新陈代谢、免疫力，甚至行为。目前刚刚开始解答的重要问题是，这些细菌影响特定宿主特征的机制是什么。一个重要但研究不足的机制似乎涉及激素。尽管微生物群-激素信号传导的确切途径尚未被破解，但激素水平的特定变化与肠道微生物群的存在相关。微生物群产生和分泌激素，对宿主激素做出反应，并调节宿主激素的表达水平。在这里，我们总结了内分泌系统和肠道微生物群之间的联系。我们根据激素的不同功能对这些相互作用进行分类，包括影响行为、性吸引力、食欲和新陈代谢、性别和免疫力的激素。该领域的未来研究将揭示更多的联系，并阐明细菌与宿主内分泌系统相互作用的途径和后果。
