Graphene and the Microbiome
February 14, 2023 | Terry Sharrer
“The gut microbiome produces metabolites that interact with the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), a key regulator of immune homoeostasis in the gut. Here we show that oral exposure to graphene oxide (GO) modulates the composition of the gut microbiome in adult zebrafish, with significant differences in wild-type versus ahr2-deficient animals. Furthermore, GO was found to elicit AhR-dependent induction of cyp1a and homing of lck+ cells to the gut in germ-free zebrafish larvae when combined with the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. To obtain further insights into the immune responses to GO, we used single-cell RNA sequencing to profile cells from whole germ-free embryos as well as cells enriched for lck.” MORE
Image Credit: Nanowerk