Certificate of Gut Microbiome

Unit 1 – Scope and Nature of the Human Gut Microbiome

• What is a microbiome
• The gastrointestinal tract
• Stomach
• Small intestine
• Large intestine
• How the gut microbiome is established
• Birthing
• Breastfeeding
• Maintaining the microbiome as adults
• Diet and nutrition for improving the microbiome
• Lifestyle and other factors
• The gut microbiome effect
• Contribution to metabolic function
• Protect against pathogens
• Educating the immune system
• Gut microbe disruption & dysbiosis
• Dysbiosis

Unit 2 – Genetics, Metagenomics and Metabolomics

• Bioinformatics
• Microbiome heritability
• Health hereditary
• Metabolomics
• Technologies
• Bacteria metabolism
• Short chain fatty acids
• Organic acids
• Vitamins
• DNA sequencing technologies
• Next generation sequencing
• Applications of PCR and DNA sequencing
• Metagenomics
• Samples and sampling techniques
• Biopsy
• Luminal brushing
• Laser capture microdissection
• Sampling considerations
• The human microbiome project
• Bacterial genomic contribution to human survival

Unit 3 – Diversity and Characteristics of Biota

• Beneficial and detrimental biota – a fine balance
• Prebiotics
• Probiotics
• Natural probiotics
• Probiotic supplements
• Development of dietary supplements
• What to look for on labelling.
• Synbiotics
• Understanding microbe classification
• Types of bacteria
• Major bacterial phylums present in the gut
• Actinobacteria
• Bacteroidetes
• Firmicutes
• Proteobacteria
• Bad biota
• Nurturing a healthy gut
• Diet
• Antiobiotics – what happens to microbes

Unit 4 – Maintaining the Gut Environment

• Anatomy overview
• Stomach
• Small intestine environment
• Large intestine environment
• Managing the large intestine
• Diarrhea and digestion
• Microbiome & hormones
• Microbiome and allergies
• Microbe imbalances
• Gut dysbiosis
• Stomach conditions
• Abdominal pain
• Bloating
• Leaky gut syndrome
• Inflammation – function and process
• Biosensors
• Gut health treatment
• Probiotics and other supplements
• Nutrition-based interventions
• Lifestyle practices including stress reducing techniques
• Faecal microbiota transplant

Unit 5 – Diseases and Immunity

• The immune system
• Types of resistance
• Phagocytes
• Natural killer cells
• The inflammatory response
• Nausea and vomiting
• Swallowing problems
• Digestive disorders
• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD): Crohn’s disease, diverticulitis and ulcerative colitis (regional enteritis)
• Crohn’s disease & ulcerative colitis
• Diverticulitis
• Polyps
• Future research
• Fungi and bacteriophages – treatment in disease
• Beyond traditional probiotics
• Potential obesity treatments
• Psychobiotics

Unit 6 – Managing Diet and Nutrition

• Homeostatis and gut microbiota
• How nutrition can affect homeostasis of gut microbiota
• Functional foods & gut health
• Practical ways to improve gut microbiome health
• Easting a diverse range of foods
• Eat lots of legumes, beans, fruits and vegetables.
• Whole grains
• Eating more nuts and seeds
• Eating fermented foods
• Prebiotic foods
• Probiotics
• Eat more plant based foods
• Eat polyphenols
• Fibre
• Dairy products and the microbiome
• The importance of water
• Water absorption
• Practical ways to improve the gut microbiome
• Exercise and supplements
• Gut transit time
• Coeliac disease
• Intermittent fasting and the effects on microbial activity

Unit 7 – The Gut-Brain Axis

• What are psychobiotics?
• Probiotics
• The interaction between the mind and the body
• The gut-brain axis
• The vagus nerve
• Animal research on psychobiotics
• Neurotransmitters
• Tryptophan and serotonin
• Gaba (gamma aminobutyric acid
• Stress hormones
• Human research on psychobiotics
• Findings on depression and anxiety
• Psychobiotics and other mental health conditions
• Issues with psychobiotic research
• How can psychobiotics impact mental health?
• The future of psychobiotics
• Psychobiotics in the diet

Unit 8 – Applications of Gut Microbiome Management

• Cultivate and grow the gut microbiome
• When the conditions are right, microbes can thrive
• Pre-schoolers, young children and the microbiome
• Instance: behaviour and temperament
• Instance: improving cognition and learning
• Teenagers, young adults and the microbiome
• Instance: mucosal immunity
• Adults and the microbiome
• Instance: stress
• Instance: arthritis and pain management
• Instance: grief and emotional disturbances
• Increase psychobiotics in the diet
• More than eating to enhance microbiota
• More strategies to address SIBO
• Respond to subsequent small intestinal fungal overgrowth (SIFO) or eradication of H.Pylori.
• Focus on biofilm disruption
• Prevent sporulation – feed the bacteria well