Our own gut microbes may hold the key to removing harmful pollutants from our body
The gut microbiome is the collection of microbes – bacteria and viruses – that live symbiotically inside of our guts. From helping the immune system to aiding in neuronal development, the gut microbiome has many roles in human health. This study adds yet another role – the removal of harmful pollutants, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), from our bodies. PFAS, also known as ‘forever chemicals,’ are common human and environmental pollutants found in items ranging from non-stick cookware to raincoats. Exposure can lead to severe health issues in humans, and the full extent of their impact on the environment is yet to be understood.
A team of scientists led by Dr. Anna Lindell of Cambridge University shows that gut microbes accumulate consumed PFAS and aid in their excretion. They identified how quickly, to what extent, and by what means microbes accumulate PFAS to which they are exposed. The bacteria sequester PFAS into aggregates that appear to have little effect on the microbes’ viability and function. After one oral dose of PFAS, mice with a gut microbiome excreted more PFAS in their feces than germ-free mice, mice that lack any microbiome. This suggests that gut microbes help prevent ingested PFAS from ending up in other parts of the body.
This study is an exciting step toward addressing a mounting issue of PFAS exposure in human health. Work remains to confirm how effective this excretion may be at reducing long term PFAS exposure. Furthermore, we’ll need to know if microbiome PFAS secretion has any impact on the negative health outcomes associated with PFAS exposure before these findings will have an impact on human health.
If a gut microbiome treatment for PFAS exposure were to be developed, we would still be left with the question – where do the excreted PFAS go? As of 2022, the EPA recommends PFAS monitoring as the primary method for avoiding exposure, as our water treatment plants do not yet effectively eliminate PFAS. How might diverting PFAS exposure from humans to waste water impact our environment? Would we just be ‘passing the buck’ from a group of microbiologists to a group of chemists or environmental scientists to solve our problem? For now, we can hope these questions are being addressed in tandem, with each discipline developing solutions that will work together to bring about a healthier future.
This study was led by Anna Lindell at the Medical Research Council Toxicology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Managing Correspondent: Samuel Lapp
Press Article: Gut microbes may flush ‘forever chemicals’ from the body (ScienceNews)
Original Journal Article: Human gut bacteria bioaccumulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (Nature Microbiology)
Image Credit: Nature Microbiology