Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Scientists have discovered a previously unknown virus living in the human gut, according to a study in Nature Communications.
Exploring genetic material found in intestinal samples, the international team uncovered the CrAssphage virus.
They say the virus could influence the behaviour of some of the most common bacteria in our gut.
Experts say these types of viruses, called bacteriophages, have been shown to play a role in chronic diseases.
Led by a team at San Diego State University in the USA, scientists scoured genetic information stored in three large international databases.
They stumbled upon a piece of DNA, some 100,000 letters long, present in more than half of all samples from the gut.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-28440006
Exploring genetic material found in intestinal samples, the international team uncovered the CrAssphage virus.
They say the virus could influence the behaviour of some of the most common bacteria in our gut.
Experts say these types of viruses, called bacteriophages, have been shown to play a role in chronic diseases.
Led by a team at San Diego State University in the USA, scientists scoured genetic information stored in three large international databases.
They stumbled upon a piece of DNA, some 100,000 letters long, present in more than half of all samples from the gut.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-28440006