Cambridge researchers discover gut bacteria that can absorb up to 75 percent of PFAS.
Researchers have found that nine species of gut bacteria can help detoxify the body from forever chemicals, rapidly absorbing PFAS linked to cancer and other serious illnesses.
“This uncovers a new beneficial role of gut bacteria for the human health—to help removing toxic PFAS from our body,” senior study author Kiran Patil, a member of the MRC Toxicology Unit, University of Cambridge, told The Epoch Times.
How Bacteria Work
The Cambridge University study, published in the journal Nature Microbiology, identified nine bacterial species that can absorb up to 75 percent of toxic PFAS—per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances—from their surroundings.
PFAS are synthetic chemicals used in thousands of consumer products, from nonstick pans and waterproof clothing to cosmetics and food packaging. Dubbed “forever chemicals” because they resist breaking down in the environment, PFAS accumulate in human bodies and have been linked to various cancers, liver damage, and immune system disorders.
Currently, there are no approved treatments to remove PFAS from the human body, making this discovery potentially significant for public health.
The research team identified nine bacterial species—including six in the Bacteroides family, Odoribacter splanchnicus, Parabacteroides distasonis, and Parabacteroides merdae—that can absorb two common types of PFAS: perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).
When these bacteria were introduced into mice, they quickly absorbed the chemicals. When they were excreted through the gut, the forever chemicals were removed with them in waste. Within minutes of exposure, the bacteria absorbed between 25 and 74 percent of PFAS chemicals at various concentration levels.
The researchers believe the way bacteria collect PFAS into protective clumps inside their cells is a survival mechanism that prevents the chemicals from causing cellular damage.
As the mice were exposed to increasing PFAS levels, the bacteria kept removing a steady percentage of the toxins, suggesting they could act as a natural filter in the gut.
