Author: Jeremy Rehm / Source: Science News

Some gut bacteria really put the hooks into their host — but in a good way.
Observations in mice show that certain filamentous microbes use a hooklike appendage to send messages that researchers believe are aimed at preventing immune cells from attacking the microbes.The finding, reported in the March 8 Science, could help explain how an immune system distinguishes friendly gut bacteria from deadly pathogens, says microbiologist Primrose Freestone of the University of Leicester in England, who was not involved in the research.
Because the gut provides an easy gateway for microbes to infect a person or other animal, the intestine is replete with immune cells ready to attack. Researchers have closely examined how immune cells such as T cells recognize and attack pathogens like E. coli. But it’s unclear why these same immune cells don’t kill the trillions of gut microbes that help with digestion and keep people healthy.
Immunologist Ivaylo Ivanov at Columbia University and his colleagues examined segmented filamentous bacteria,…
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