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Application of Flow Vermimetry for Quantification and Analysis of the Caenorhabditis elegans Gut Microbiome
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Boron symbiotaxis: a new concept in host-microbiome communication
Andreea Silvia Pîrvu1, Andrei Biţă2,3, Ion Romulus Scorei4
1Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, Craiova, Romania.
Frontiers in Microbiology
|January 22, 2026
Summary
Dietary boron influences gut microbial communication by stabilizing signaling molecules and creating local reservoirs. This "boron symbiotaxis" framework explains how boron impacts bacterial quorum sensing (QS) and host phenotypes, with potential benefits or detriments.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology and Biochemistry
- Nutritional Science
- Systems Biology
Background:
- Boron (B) interacts with biological molecules like diols and phosphate esters.
- Dietary boron forms plasma-accessible (PAB) and microbiota-accessible (MABC) pools.
- MABCs influence signaling molecule dynamics at the gut mucosa.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose the 'boron symbiotaxis' framework.
- To explain boron's role in stabilizing furanosyl intermediates and AI-2 signaling.
- To outline methods for assessing boron's impact on gut microbial communities and host phenotypes.
Main Methods:
- Speciation-resolved 11B-NMR spectroscopy.
- Targeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) for AI-2 and AI-2B.
- Bacterial reporter strains with defined AI-2 receptors.
Main Results:
- Boron stabilizes 4,5-dihydroxypentane-2,3-dione (DPD)-derived intermediates and AI-2B.
- MABCs localize chemical potential at the mucosal surface.
- Boron's influence on AI-2 dynamics can be context-dependent, potentially promoting or hindering microbial growth.
Conclusions:
- Boron is a plausible modulator of gut microbial quorum sensing (QS) architectures.
- The boron symbiotaxis framework predicts diet → B speciation → AI-2 dynamics → host phenotypes.
- Boron-mediated stabilization and localization effects can be advantageous or detrimental to the host.
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