Gut microbiota and lung illustration (IMAGE)

Georgia State University

Gut microbiota and lung illustration

Caption

This picture illustrates an example of gut microbiota composition dictating how resident lung alveolar macrophages (AM) respond to viral infection. The presence of segmented filamentous bacteria, a commensal microbe present in some mice, reprograms AM gene expression, increasing complement expression and phagocytosis, thereby enabling AM to engulf and destroy viral pathogens without inflammatory signaling. 

 

Credit

Dr. Andrew Gewirtz

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Original content

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