iThei mdcdaelcinfd o c elllllrllll citlhscOpportunistic Gram-Negative Bacteria in the Human GI Tract• Hafnia alvei• Pseudomonas aeruginosa• Morganella morganii• Proteus mirabilis• Proteus vulgaris• Pseudomona putida• Citobacter koseri• Klebsiella pneumoniaSome of the bacteria in each person’s GI tract can be
pathogenic when the mucous barrier is compromised.
Dr. Michael Maes is a psychiatrist and pioneer who specializes in treating
chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). He has detected increased intestinal
permeability in the chronic fatigue patients in his clinic.
Dr. Maes and colleagues have found that in the presence of leaky gut,
certain gram-negative enterobacteria that normally reside in human in-
testines move through the intestinal wall into the circulation in patients
with chronic fatigue syndrome and depression.
IgM and IgA antibodies to bacteria normally present in the gut can be
detected in the serum when the bacteria cross the intestinal wall into the
bloodstream or lymphatic system (bacterial translocation), where they
are recognized and attacked by white blood cells.
Through the use of antibody serum tests, Dr. Maes has measured an in-
creased response to endotoxin, a substance released by the gram-negative
bacteria in his patients with CFS and depression. He has been able to corre-
late the patients’ symptoms with the levels of IgA and IgM response to en-
dotoxin, thus showing higher responses to the bacteria translated to more
debilitating symptoms of chronic fatigue and depression.