Themicrobiome is the collection of all microbes (微生物), such as bacteria, fungi, -组卷网

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The microbiome is the collection of all microbes (微生物), such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other life, which naturally live in an individual, be it a person or a plant. For humans and many other species, the best characterized microbiome centers on the bacteria in the gut (肠). The more microbiologists study these gut microbes, the more they link the bacteria to functions of their hosts. In humans, gut bacteria influence how the body responds to disease-causing bacteria, or interact with the brain, affecting the mood.

Andrew Moeller is an evolutionary biologist at Cornell University. Six years ago, he and his colleagues reported the work showing human gut microbes are very similar to those in other primates (灵长类), suggesting their presence predates the evolution of humans. But his follow-up studies indicate the human gut microbiome has changed greatly, compared with our current primate cousins. He found 85 microbial varieties in the guts of wild monkeys, but just 55 in people in US cities. Besides, people in less developed parts of the world have between 60 and 65 of those bacterial groups.

“Changes in diet as humans moved on from their hunter-gatherer past and into cities, antibiotic (抗生素) use, more life stresses, and better hygiene are all possible contributors to that great change in gut microbes,” says Reshmi Upreti, a microbiologist at the University of Washington, Bothell. Several researchers have argued that this lower diversity could contribute to increases in various diseases.

However, Kyle Meyer, a microbiologist at UC Berkeley, argues such loses are not necessarily a problem. “Maybe we don’t need them,” he points out. But Moeller is worried. “We are really doing some scary stuff to our microbiomes,” he warns. Moeller and others also suggest identifying the missing microbes may be the first step in bringing them back. “If we determine that these groups were providing important functions to keep humans healthy,“Upreti says, “perhaps we can restore them by introducing probiotics (益生菌) to the digestive system through foods and supplements.”

【小题1】What conclusion do microbiologists probably draw about gut microbes?

A．They are crucial to humans’ health.

B．They can easily adapt to new hosts.

C．They encourage the growth of disease-causing bacteria.

D．They vary greatly from individual to individual.

【小题2】What do Andrew Moeller’s follow-up studies imply?

A．Humans need fewer gut microbes to digest than other primates.

B．The variety of human gut microbes has reduced greatly.

C．Human gut microbes are very similar to those in monkeys.

D．The presence of gut microbes accelerates the evolution of humans.

【小题3】What does Reshmi Upreti suggest?

A．Ignoring the loss of microbes.