Rebecca Wall
Position: Senior Lecturer School/office: School of Medical SciencesEmail: rebecca.wall@oru.se
Phone: +46 19 303383
Room: X4312
Research subject
Research environments
About Rebecca Wall
Rebecca Wall joined the Nutrition-Gut-Brain Interactions Research Centre in July 2014 as a research associate. She received a Master’s Degree in Chemistry from University of Kalmar, Sweden, in 2003 and a PhD in Microbiology from University College Cork, Ireland, in 2008. Her PhD thesis, entitled ”Metabolic activity of enteric microbiota – implications for host health”, focused on the analysis of microbiota-host interactions and production of bioactive compounds by human intestinal microbes. Rebecca worked as a postdoctoral scientist for 4 years (2009-2013) in Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, Ireland, and most of her research during this time involved examining the effects of metabolically active bacterial strains on host fatty acid metabolism and physiology, with a focus on brain function.
Rebeccas research interests includes to understand more about the functions of the microbiota in microbiota-gut-brain-interactions (not just ”who is there” but ”what are they doing”). Her research focuses on the products of bacterial metabolism, such as short chain fatty acids. Butyrate is one of these short chain fatty acids, that is produced in close proximity to our intestinal epithelial cells, by microbial fermentation of undigested dietary fibers. Accumulated literature supports butyrate as being anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory and barrier protective in the distal human gut. In addition, a decrease of butyrate-producing microbes has been inversely associated with colonic disease, including IBD and IBS, supporting the view that butyrate may be a critical determinant of disease resistance. Rebeccas current research aims to understand more about butyrates role in the communication between microbes and the host.
Research projects
Active projects
- Effect of serotonergic stimulation on the gut-brain axis in irritable bowel syndrome patients compared with healthy subjects applying functional brain imaging
- The effects of fermentable dietary fibre supplementation on intestinal permeability and inflammation in microscopic colitis
- Establishing a novel gut-brain axis model
- Identification of dietary fibres that promotes butyrate production
- Interaction between dietary protein and fibre fermentation - its functional consequences
- Butyrate-promoting dietary fibres as a potential strategy for the prevention of type-2 diabetes
- Age-associated gastrointestinal symptoms
- Mode of action of butyrate in the human colon
- Network medicine and systems biological approaches to modeling inflammation
- Systematic modelling: quantitative and semi-qualitative implementations of nutrition-microbe-gut-blood-brain interactions regarding the role of butyrate
- To determine the butyrate transport capacity in vitro and in tissue samples from healthy individuals and from patients with digestive disorders
Completed projects
- Integrative bioinformatics: combining clinical, physiological, brain imaging and molecular profiles
- To evaluate anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of butyrate on the transport of large neutral amino acids such as tryptophan, a precursor of the neurotransmitter serotonin, in in vitro models
Publications
Articles in journals |
Articles, reviews/surveys |
Chapters in books |
Conference papers |
Articles in journals
- Rode, J. , Yang, L. , König, J. , Hutchinson, A. , Wall, R. , Venizelos, N. , Brummer, R. J. , Rangel, I. & et al. (2021). Butyrate Rescues Oxidative Stress-Induced Transport Deficits of Tryptophan: Potential Implication in Affective or Gut-Brain Axis Disorders. Neuropsychobiology, 80 (3), 253-263.
- Tabat, M. W. , Marques, T. M. , Markgren, M. , Löfvendahl, L. , Brummer, R. J. & Wall, R. (2020). Acute Effects of Butyrate on Induced Hyperpermeability and Tight Junction Protein Expression in Human Colonic Tissues. Biomolecules, 10 (5).
- Fart, F. , Rajan, S. K. , Wall, R. , Rangel, I. , Ganda Mall, J. P. , Tingö, L. , Brummer, R. J. , Repsilber, D. & et al. (2020). Differences in Gut Microbiome Composition between Senior Orienteering Athletes and Community-Dwelling Older Adults. Nutrients, 12 (9).
- Neumann, G. , Wall, R. , Rangel, I. , Marques, T. M. & Repsilber, D. (2018). Qualitative modelling of the interplay of inflammatory status and butyrate in the human gut: a hypotheses about robust bi-stability. BMC Systems Biology, 12 (1).
- Marques, T. M. , Patterson, E. , Wall, R. , O'Sullivan, O. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Cotter, P. D. , Dinan, T. G. , Cryan, J. F. & et al. (2016). Influence of GABA and GABA-producing Lactobacillus brevis DPC 6108 on the development of diabetes in a streptozotocin rat model. Beneficial Microbes, 7 (3), 409-420.
- Marques, T. M. , Wall, R. , O'Sullivan, O. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Shanahan, F. , Quigley, E. M. , Cotter, P. D. , Cryan, J. F. & et al. (2015). Dietary trans-10, cis-12-conjugated linoleic acid alters fatty acid metabolism and microbiota composition in mice. British Journal of Nutrition, 113 (5), 728-738.
- Wall, R. , Cryan, J. F. , Ross, R. P. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Dinan, T. G. & Stanton, C. (2014). Bacterial neuroactive compounds produced by psychobiotics. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, 817, 221-239.
- London, L. E. E. , Kumar, A. H. S. , Wall, R. , Casey, P. G. , O'Sullivan, O. , Shanahan, F. , Hill, C. , Cotter, P. D. & et al. (2014). Exopolysaccharide-producing probiotic Lactobacilli reduce serum cholesterol and modify enteric microbiota in ApoE-deficient mice. Journal of Nutrition, 144 (12).
- Patterson, E. , O' Doherty, R. M. , Murphy, E. F. , Wall, R. , O' Sullivan, O. , Nilaweera, K. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Cotter, P. D. & et al. (2014). Impact of dietary fatty acids on metabolic activity and host intestinal microbiota composition in C57BL/6J mice. British Journal of Nutrition, 111 (11), 1905-1917.
- Wall, R. , Marques, T. M. , O'Sullivan, O. , Ross, R. P. , Shanahan, F. , Quigley, E. M. , Dinan, T. G. , Kiely, B. & et al. (2012). Contrasting effects of Bifidobacterium breve NCIMB 702258 and Bifidobacterium breve DPC 6330 on the composition of murine brain fatty acids and gut microbiota. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 95 (5), 1278-1287.
- Fouhy, F. , Guinane, C. M. , Hussey, S. , Wall, R. , Ryan, C. A. , Dempsey, E. M. , Murphy, B. , Ross, R. P. & et al. (2012). High-throughput sequencing reveals the incomplete, short-term recovery of infant gut microbiota following parenteral antibiotic treatment with ampicillin and gentamicin. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, 56 (11), 5811-5820.
- Hussey, S. , Wall, R. , Gruffman, E. , O'Sullivan, L. , Ryan, C. A. , Murphy, B. , Fitzgerald, G. , Stanton, C. & et al. (2011). Parenteral antibiotics reduce bifidobacteria colonization and diversity in neonates. International Journal of Microbiology, 2011.
- Rosberg-Cody, E. , Stanton, C. , O'Mahony, L. , Wall, R. , Shanahan, F. , Quigley, E. M. , Fitzgerald, G. F. & Ross, R. P. (2011). Recombinant lactobacilli expressing linoleic acid isomerase can modulate the fatty acid composition of host adipose tissue in mice. Microbiology, 157 (2), 609-615.
- Wall, R. , Ross, R. P. , Fitzgerald, G. F. & Stanton, C. (2010). Fatty acids from fish: the anti-inflammatory potential of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.. Nutrition reviews, 68 (5), 280-289.
- Wall, R. , Ross, R. P. , Shanahan, F. , O'Mahony, L. , Kiely, B. , Quigley, E. , Dinan, T. G. , Fitzgerald, G. & et al. (2010). Impact of administered bifidobacterium on murine host fatty acid composition. Lipids, 45 (5), 429-436.
- Wall, R. , Ross, R. P. , Shanahan, F. , O'Mahony, L. , O'Mahony, C. , Coakley, M. , Hart, O. , Lawlor, P. & et al. (2009). Metabolic activity of the enteric microbiota influences the fatty acid composition of murine and porcine liver and adipose tissues. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 89 (5), 1393-1401.
- Wall, R. , Hussey, S. G. , Ryan, C. A. , O'Neill, M. , Fitzgerald, G. , Stanton, C. & Ross, R. P. (2008). Presence of two Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium probiotic strains in the neonatal ileum. The ISME Journal, 2 (1), 83-91.
- Wall, R. , Fitzgerald, G. , Hussey, S. , Ryan, T. , Murphy, B. , Ross, P. & Stanton, C. (2007). Genomic diversity of cultivable Lactobacillus populations residing in the neonatal and adult gastrointestinal tract. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 59 (1), 127-137.
Articles, reviews/surveys
- Patterson, E. , Wall, R. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Ross, R. P. & Stanton, C. (2012). Health implications of high dietary omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism, 2012.
- Marques, T. M. , Wall, R. , Ross, R. P. , Fitzgerald, G. F. , Ryan, C. A. & Stanton, C. (2010). Programming infant gut microbiota: influence of dietary and environmental factors. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 21 (2), 149-156.
- Wall, R. , Ross, R. P. , Ryan, C. A. , Hussey, S. , Murphy, B. , Fitzgerald, G. F. & Stanton, C. (2009). Role of gut microbiota in early infant development. Clinical Medicine: Pediatrics, 3, 45-54.
Chapters in books
- Marques, T. M. , Holster, S. , Wall, R. , König, J. & Brummer, R. J. (2016). Correlating the gut microbiome to health and disease. In: Niall Hyland, Catherine Stanton, The Gut-Brain Axis: Dietary, Probiotic, and Prebiotic Interventions on the Microbiota (pp. 261-291). . Elsevier.
Conference papers
- Gorreja, F. , Rangel, I. , Rush, S. , Wall, R. , De Vos, W. M. & Brummer, R. J. (2018). Double-blind cross-over trial reveals human mucosal transcriptome responses to variants of LGG administration in vivo. In: Peter Konturek, Targeting microbiota 6th World congress on targeting microbiota towards clinical revolution. Paper presented at 6th World Congress on Targeting Microbiota, Porto, Portugal, October 28-30, 2018. Porto, Portugal: ISM.
- Gorreja, F. , Rush, S. , Marques, T. M. , Repsilber, D. , Baker, A. , Wall, R. & Brummer, R. J. (2018). The impacts of probiotics and prebiotics on the gut mucosa and immune system through targeting inflammation and intestinal barrier function. Paper presented at Food and Inflammation - 2nd Conference of Food Science Sweden, Örebro, Sweden, 21 Nov., 2018.
- Wall, R. , Marques, T. , Edebol-Carlman, H. , Sundin, J. , Vumma, R. , Rangel, I. & Brummer, R. J. (2017). Altered expression of membrane transporters in colonic mucosa of patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and Post-infectious (PI)-IBS compared to healthy subjects. In: Neurogastroenterology and Motility. John Wiley & Sons.