Posted on 03/25/2024 9:19:36 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
Gut bacteria and a diet rich in the amino acid tryptophan can play a protective role against pathogenic E. coli, which can cause severe stomach upset, cramps, fever, intestinal bleeding and renal failure, according to a study.
The research reveals how dietary tryptophan—an amino acid found mostly in animal products, nuts, seeds, whole grains and legumes—can be broken down by gut bacteria into small molecules called metabolites. It turns out a few of these metabolites can bind to a receptor on gut epithelial (surface) cells, triggering a pathway that ultimately reduces the production of proteins that E. coli use to attach to the gut lining where they cause infection. When E. coli fail to attach and colonize the gut, the pathogen benignly moves through and passes out of the body.
The research describes a previously unknown role in the gut for a receptor, DRD2. DRD2 has otherwise been known as a dopamine (neurotransmitter) receptor in the central and peripheral nervous systems.
Samantha Scott, a postdoctoral researcher in Chang's lab, is first author of the study.
Now that Chang, Scott and colleagues have identified a specific pathway to help prevent E. coli infection, they may now begin studying the DRD2 receptor and components of its downstream pathway for therapeutic targets.
In the study, the researchers used mice infected with Citrobacter rodentium, a bacterium that closely resembles E. coli, since certain pathogenic E. coli don't infect mice. Through experiments, the researchers identified that there was less pathogen and inflammation (a sign of an active immune system and infection) after mice were fed a tryptophan-supplemented diet.
The experiments revealed a new role of dopamine receptor DRD2 in the gut that controls actin proteins and affects a previously unknown pathway for preventing a pathogenic bacteria's ability to colonize the gut.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Of course, you can just make sure you get tryptophan, instead, and apparently get the benefit of protection against E. coli issues.
Turkey
My first thought was that the food that provided the Tryptophan probably was laced with the E. coli.
Turkeys and chickens hardest hit.
Didn’t you post something a while back that talked about the hazards of Tryptophan?
Nice turkey sandwich with gravy! Then, a nap!
Sauerkraut, kielbasa and potatoes = happy tummy.
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