Researchers think they have identified a new type of perception linked to the power supply, directly connected to this part of the body.
And if our perception of the world does not was not limited to the five senses that we know? According to a study by researchers from Duke University, in North Carolina, there is a mechanism that is still poorly understood, located not in the brain or peripheral nerves, but in the intestines.
Ce « hidden meaning Could play a role in the way we react to our environmentthrough internal signals hitherto little explored. This is what reports Popular Mechanicswhich indicates the First advanced tracks In this work published in late July 2025.
When the intestine dialogues with the brain
Long confined to its digestive rolethe intestine gradually imposes itself as a central actor of our balance interior.
With its 500 million neurons and its direct brain connection via the vagus nerve, he does not just digest what we eat: he actively participates in the regulation of our sensations The most fundamental.
Duke University researchers looked at a special proteinFlagelline, produced by certain bacteria and involved in the perception of hunger and satiety.
This inner dialogue is based on a specific mechanism: the detection of this protein by a receiver called TLR5, present on Intestinal nerve cells named neuropods. When activated, this structure triggers an impulse brain by the vagus nerve.
This fast circuit, comparable to an expressway between our microbiota and our central nervous systemsuggests a much more extensive role in our intestine in the regulation of our physiological state.
When the microbiota influences appetite
To test their hypothesis, researchers have conducted a series of experiences On an empty stomach mouse. Result: those with the TLR5 receiver and exposed to Flagelline spontaneously reduces their food intake.
Conversely, mice devoid of this receiver have continued to eat As if nothing had happened, with quick weight gain. What confirm that the brain, via the vagus nerve, does not capture Signals from the intestinecapable of immediately influencing eating behavior.
The authors of the study advance the idea of a ” neurobiotic », A form of internal perception founded not on traditional senses, but on the constant dialogue between the brain and intestinal bacteria.
A track that could ultimately pave the way for new approaches in the Obesity treatment and eating disorders.
For researcher Diego Bohórquez, this discovery perhaps represents ” a Puzzle key room »Complex relationships between nervous system, microbiome and Metabolic health.
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