Regulation of the gut microbiota by the mucosal immune system in mice.

ABSTRACT: The benefits of commensal bacteria to the health of the host have been well documented, such as providing stimulation to potentiate host immune responses, generation of useful metabolites, and direct competition with pathogens. However, the ability of the host immune system to control the microbiota remains less well understood. Recent microbiota analyses in mouse models have revealed detailed structures and diversities of microbiota at different sites of the digestive tract in mouse populations. The contradictory findings of previous studies on the role of host immune responses in overall microbiota composition are likely attributable to the high β-diversity in mouse populations as well as technical limitations of the methods to analyze microbiota. The host employs multiple systems to str

SUBMITTER: Hasegawa M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4142603 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature