The Oral-Microbiome-Brain Axis and Neuropsychiatric Disorders: An Anthropological Perspective.

In the 21st century, neuropsychiatric disorders (NPDs) are on the rise, yet the causal mechanisms behind this global epidemic remain poorly understood. A key to these unknowns may lie within the vast communities of bacteria, fungi, and viruses in the body (microbiota), which are intimately linked with health and disease. NPDs were recently shown to be connected to gut microbiota, which can communicate with and influence the brain through the Gut-Brain-Axis (GBA).

Fur Color and Nutritional Status Predict Hair Cortisol Concentrations of Dogs in Nicaragua.

This study examined the relationships between hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) and sex, age, nutritional status (as determined by body condition scores, or BCS), and body mass (geometric mean calculated from morphometric measurements), as well as the potential influence of hair pigmentation (light, dark, or agouti/mixed) on HCC in dogs of the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve, Nicaragua. The dogs examined in this study live in a marginal environment where disease, malnutrition, and mortality rates are high. For fur color, HCC was significantly higher in light fur than in than dark and mixed fur ( < 0.