Humans have long been fascinated by the idea that their microbiome—the billions of microbes that live on and inside our bodies—may be linked to their health and well-being. Now, researchers have taken this idea one step further, proposing that the human microbiome may be in the midst of an evolutionary “addiction” to its host. In a new study, published in the journal Nature, the researchers suggest that this addiction is driven by a metabolic interdependence between the host and its microbial inhabitants, which has led to a co-evolutionary relationship between them. According to the authors, this relationship has resulted in a “dynamic arms race” between the host and its microbiome, with each side adapting to the other in order to maximize its own benefit. They argue that this arms race has led to an evolutionary “addiction” to the microbiome, with the host becoming increasingly dependent on its microbial inhabitants for survival.

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source: Phys.org