An SDSU chemistry professor researches how the bacteria in our guts communicates with our brain.
By Kellie Woodhouse
Why do we get that sinking feeling in our stomach when we are nervous?
San Diego State University chemistry professor Erica Forsberg is attempting to answer this question by analyzing how the bacteria in our guts communicate with our brains.
Her “gut reaction” lab studies how the beneficial bacteria in our guts produce compounds that alter how we feel and how our brains function. She plans to expand this research by looking at how diets, drugs or disease alter how gut bacteria affect neurological health.
Forsberg came to SDSU in 2017, after spending two years as a research scientist at The Scripps Research Institute.