Number of bacteria in the human intestinal tract

Range ≤1E+14 bacteria/intestinal tract
Organism Human Homo sapiens
Reference Suau A et al., Direct analysis of genes encoding 16S rRNA from complex communities reveals many novel molecular species within the human gut. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1999 Nov65(11):4799-807. p.4799 left columnPubMed ID10543789
Comments "There are up to 10^14 total bacteria in the human intestinal tract, which is 10 to 20 times the total number of tissue cells in the entire body. The composition and activity of this flora have a profound influence on health and disease through their involvement in the nutrition, pathogenesis, and immune function of the host (10, 13). The gut microflora is an intricate ecosystem which has been investigated in great detail by anaerobic culture techniques (11, 27)." See BNID 112852
Entered by Uri M
ID 110957