2021/07/30
Keio University
RIKEN
A joint research group led by Professor Kenya Honda of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Keio University School of Medicine (who also serves as Team Leader for the Laboratory for Gut Homeostasis, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences), has discovered that a bile acid called isoalloLCA (isoallolithocholic acid) is uniquely abundant in the feces of supercentenarians and has identified the intestinal bacterial strains capable of synthesizing this bile acid. The group also revealed that isoalloLCA possesses strong antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria, and confirmed its antimicrobial effects in mouse experiments.
This achievement is expected to lead to the development of preventive and therapeutic methods for infectious diseases in humans, as well as to the elucidation of the secrets to health and longevity.
The results of this research were published in the online edition of the international academic journal "Nature" on July 30, 2021 (JST).
Please see below for the full press release.