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Updated: Jan 21, 2026

Creation of Colonic Anastomosis in Mice
Published on: January 17, 2019
Hiding in Plain Sight: Colonic Spirochetosis in Humans
1Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, McGovern Medical School, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, Texas, USA Steven.J.Norris@uth.tmc.edu.
Abstract:
In 1967, Harland and Lee made a startling discovery: in some humans, the colonic epithelium is covered with a "forest" of spirochetes (W. A. Harlan, and F. D. Lee, Br Med J 3:718-719, 1967, https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.3.5567.718). In this issue of Journal of Bacteriology, Thorell et al. present a systematic analysis of the prevalence and diversity of the spirochetes Brachyspira aalborgi and Brachyspira pilosicoli in the human colon. These and prior studies provide avenues toward resolving important questions: what bacterial and host parameters contribute to this extensive colonization, and what impact does it have on human health?
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