Leder / Henrik Nielsen

The importance of protecting gut/skin biodiversity to preserve health

The gut/skin microbiome biodiversity is central to the body’s defense and disease presentations. During COVID-19, the decline in gut biodiversity has come into focus. The question is how reduced gut/skin biodiversity may increase the risk of death or secondary manifestations from viral attacks. And what can we do to prevent a reduction in the body’s defense in the future?

Today, thousands of people are living with diseases that are the direct consequence of negative environmental factors. This goes far beyond infections due to bacteria and viruses. People know of course about environmental factors like smoking, obesity, etc. that are harmful to health, but negative impacts also come from more hidden sources such as synthetic chemicals and pesticides in foods, and microparticles in urban air. These negative environmental factors can result in a breakdown of the body’s protection, impair the biodiversity in our mucous membranes, and make us more vulnerable to a wide range of diseases.

The role of skin microbiotas

Skin-barrier structure and function are essential for health. Skin microbiotas play an integral role in the maturation and homeostatic regulation of keratinocytes and host immune networks, with systemic implications for the importance of gut/skin biodiversity. Indeed, disturbances of the stratum corneum have been noted in allergic diseases (eczema and food allergy), psoriasis, rosacea, acne vulgaris and with the skin-aging process.

Impaired gut biodiversity

Examples of diseases related to impaired gut biodiversity include chronic fatigue syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and Gulf War Illness. These have been intensively studied over the years. Less well-studied are several chronic diseases that all have commonalities with late-COVID-19 symptoms: fatigue, memory discomfort, and diffuse pain. The factors surrounding these chronic diseases can only be evaluated with more time – cause and effect are not currently understood.

New insights into gut-brain communication1 have emerged from studies that have sought to link the gut microbiome to diseases we do not yet understand, for example Myalgia Encephalomyelitis (ME)/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS).

Understanding the gut defense system

The emergence of atypical chronic diseases such as ME/ CFS is a mystery, but when virus intrusion and degraded environmental conditions (leading to degraded gut/skin biodiversity) are taken into consideration, then we can focus on the question of whether biodiversity failure is a factor in these diseases. Studies of COVID-19 and the surrounding environmental conditions, where the setting for disease outbreak was present before the pandemic, will bring us closer to understanding the gut defense system.

As researchers, we are limited by the fact that it is not ethically justifiable to conduct experiments on humans. We simply must lean on statistics and considerations. Regardless, it is important that we do not let our actions be slowed down by lack of evidence.

Greater focus should be put on the importance of gut/ skin biodiversity in relation to the health of the body. If we fail to do this, things will go as we see in nature – and the species could go extinct. The biodiversity that we have all acquired early in life affects the development of our immune system and is responsible for the health and development of diseases later in life.

Henrik Nielsen / M.D., D.M.Sc., specialist in intern medicine and rheumatology.

Many studies have shown that dysbiosis (lack of biodiversity of the mucous membranes) in infants leads to many diseases, such as lung diseases, asthma, food allergies, diabetes, obesity, and autoimmune diseases. Lack of exposure to microorganisms in early life can cause allergies. Studies have shown that children who grow up in natural environments have fewer allergy symptoms than children who grow up in urban areas. One of the reasons that children in urban areas have less diversity in their intestines is due to pollution from microparticles in the air.

The human gut microbiome

Recently, many studies have shown the important role of the human gut microbiome. This includes, among other things, the ability to extract energy from food, to increase the harvest of nutrients, to change the appetite signal and to maintain the production of vitamins, to name just a few examples. The gut microbiome includes more than 100 trillion microorganisms and has 150 times more genes than the human genome itself. It is involved in basic biological processes, including the regulation of intestinal development, graduation of the individual metabolic nature, and stimulation of innate immunity, as well as the production of antimicrobial substances that kill microbial organisms (the organism’s own antibiotics).

That’s why it’s important to have more research into the body’s gut-biodiversity. Also, it is important that we make a significant effort to increase biodiversity in nature so it can “rub off” on us as human beings. Two positive steps would be to preserve more space for wild nature and to limit pesticides that exterminate insects and bees. This kind of action is necessary if we, as humans, have a chance of staying healthy. A call for action

This is too serious an issue for us to slow our efforts because of a lack of evidence. We need to lean on hypotheses and act now. There is a need for increased research into the health consequences of pollution from synthetic chemicals and microparticles, and the accompanying degradation of the gut/skin-biodiversity.

From a political perspective, this means more research stimulation and funding. From a medical perspective, we need more focus on matters we do not understand; ME/ CFS has had long periods of neglect. General practitioners have not been trained in this disease, despite the fact it was the most ANA-positive disease back in 1986 in the Stanford lab where ANAs were defined (ANA = antinuclear antibodies).

The study done by König RS et al as applied to ME/CFS serves as an example. We should use the same approach to study diseases such as lupus, Parkinson’s, and psoriasis. Studies with similar assessments of biodiversity-loss due to environmental factors have the potential to bring us closer to understanding chronic diseases in general.

Reference:

1. König RS, Albrich WC, Kahlert CR, et al. The Gut Microbiome in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS. Front Immunol. 2022. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2021.628741