Our Gut Biome and How It Influences the Brain

About the talk

We are all familiar with the expression “we are what we eat,” signifying that the food we consume directly impacts physical health, mental well-being, and even genetic expression. Actually the real influence is the gut microbiome — a complex, diverse ecosystem of approximately 38 trillion microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi, residing primarily in the large intestine. It acts as a vital, supportive “organ” that digests food, produces nutrients, regulates the immune system, and influences mood and cognition through the gut-brain axis: a bidirectional communication network in constant, two-way communication via neural (vagus nerve), endocrine (hormones), and immune pathways.

This is the genesis of Dr. Ciernia's research, which is groundbreaking and fundamental, examining the mechanisms of this bidirectional communication. In this session she tells us about the questions she is asking, the research and results from her work, and the near and long-term goals for application of the research generally — and beyond autism.

About the speaker

Dr. Ciernia is Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, UBC, with her own laboratory at the Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health. Her lab combines experimental and computational approaches to understand how epigenetic mechanisms regulate gene expression across our lifespan, focusing on multiple brain cell populations across normal brain and immune system development and in rodent models of neurodevelopmental disorders such as Autism Spectrum Disorder. She was referred to Science Plus by Lara Boyd, director of UBC's Brain Behaviour Lab, who presented in April 2020.