Bacteria reprogrammed to study bee microbiota

A reprogrammed bacterium is able to colonize the bee's intestine and fluoresce when it detects a molecule of interest (a molecule called IPTG in this case). Audam Chhun, DMF-UNIL - Scientists at the University of Lausanne have succeeded in reprogramming a bacterium that can now detect a specific molecule in a bee's intestine and produce a fluorescent protein in response, which can be observed under a microscope. The microorganisms present in the intestine, known as the gut microbiota, play a key role in our development and health. Understanding the interactions between these microorganisms and their hosts is not easy, as the intestinal environment is complex and, above all, difficult to access. Studying it non-invasively to detect and measure the myriad of molecular information it contains remains a real challenge. A team of researchers co-led by Yolanda Schaerli and her colleague Philipp Engel , both associate professors in the Department of Fundamental Microbiology (DMF) at the University of Lausanne's Faculty of Biology and Medicine, have overcome this problem by genetically reprogramming bacteria naturally present in the gut to act as in situ biosensors. A simple but precious microbiota.