Fire in the Belly? Sulfur-Reducing Gut Microbes Fuel Arsenic Thiolation.

The article focuses on a study that hypothesized that that sulfur-reducing bacteria play significant role in the conversion of monomethylarsonic acid (MMA) to a thiolated form, and states that the study tested their hypothesis using a Simulator of the Human Intestinal Microbial Ecosystem (SHIME), a device that mimics the digestive processes. Topics discussed include arsenic biotransformation in colon, arsenic thiolation in the gut and integral role of microbiome in human health.