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EPISODE 1
THE GUT-BRAIN CONNECTION

We are not alone. The human body is itself an extremely diverse ecosystem of trillions of bacteria and other microorganisms that live on us and in us, especially in the intestines. It’s a two-way, symbiotic relationship that keeps us healthy both physically and mentally.

The microbiome-gut–brain axis (MGB) is a bidirectional communication pathway between the gut and the central nervous system that is significantly influenced by the microorganisms that symbiotically live in our gut. Our bodies are host to an enormous population of these microorganisms, collectively called microbiota or microflora, with the genomes in the microbiota termed the microbiome. These gut microbes outnumber the cells in our bodies by a factor of 10, contain 150 times more genes than our own, and comprise more than 1,000 species and over 7,000 strains.

A growing body of research implicates the gut microbiome in the regulation of the CNS and behaviour in general while the CNS impacts microbiota development and composition—it is a bidirectional communication network.

This episode explores the gut-brain axis through the research of leading scientists in the field.

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