stage a coup? These are questions that future research will
undoubtedly need to address.
The sinus (or rhinosinal) microbiome may be of
particular relevance to the brain. The sinus cavity provides
direct access to the brain via its rich vascular bed of highly
permeable capillaries. What does this mean for the microbial
chemical factory that inhabits that area? Recent research out
of Harvard suggests that amyloid plaque (the kind that
builds up in Alzheimer’s disease) may be, for some, a
response to a brain-microbial infection. This positions the
nasal microbiome as an exciting candidate for exploration in
the coming years. What mixture of microbes provides the
least competitive advantage for incoming troublemakers?
Are probiotic nasal sprays a cognitive-boosting treatment of
the future? Is it a coincidence that sense of smell is the first
sense to be affected by cognitive decline? I, for one, am
excited to track the developing science on the horizon.
FIELD NOTES
A healthy gut becomes a butyrate factory,
transforming dietary fiber to one of the most
important quenchers of inflammation.
Butyrate has been shown to boost BDNF, the brain’s
ultimate fertilizer.
Autoimmunity (when the host’s immune system
attacks the cells of the host) can be instigated by
gluten for many people. The typical low-fiber