A model system to investigate microbiome effects on age-related health in C. elegans

With the advancement of modern medicine, our aging population is rising sharply. In recent years there has been more focus in increasing healthspan, as well as lifespan, to improve the quality of life of older adults. The microbiome has been shown to play a huge role in human biological functions in both health and disease. This study focuses on two major healthcare concerns (a) Alzheimer’s disease and (b) Sarcopenia, using the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. The research aims to investigate a microbiome approach towards treatment or prevention of these diseases. When using a C. elegans AD model, an experimental microbiome (EM) diet was shown to be protective against Aβ toxicity. From this EM, one bacterial species – Stenotrophomonas sp.Myb57 – became a focus due to its significant protective effects. It was found that this protection was genus-specific, with some species releasing a compound in its cell-free media which elicits this effect. Further study will hopefully allow us to isolate the gene or compound that is causing the protection, as a potential for an Alzheimer’s disease treatment. C. elegans was additionally used as a model for aging muscles. When testing the effects of an experimental microbiome on muscles, results showed that it made no difference to the body wall muscle cell morphology in early adulthood or the muscle contractability throughout aging. When muscle function was assessed, however, it seems that worms fed the EM had lower muscle strength in early adulthood, but were much more able to maintain this strength as they aged compared to the control. Overall, there is very promising evidence that the microbiome may be great source of research for therapeutic techniques against Alzheimer’s disease, Sarcopenia and many more.