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It is something we consume on a daily basis, yeast.

The fungi, which can be found in bread or beer, has now been proven to help strengthen the immune system.

The discovery was recently made by professor Wade Abbott, with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and his University of Lethbridge biochemistry students. The group’s findings show that certain strains of good bacteria that live in the human digestive system, can convert yeast into fatty acids that nourish the cells that line the intestinal wall.

This scientific breakthrough could lead to the development of new probiotic medicines and treatments to help fight against yeast infections and bowel diseases, such as Crohn’s.

The positive effects of yeast in the human body all depend on the amount of good bacteria person produces in their intestine. “If you don’t have those bacteria, like what’s found in Crohn’s disease, where they have less of these bacterium that’s where you start to get the negative side effects,” Abbott said.

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Fourth year student Kaitlyn Shearer explained it is an incredible accomplishment for the group. “To see how far we’ve progressed in just a few short years,” she said. “Getting a huge publication is a big deal and I’m just proud of us as a lab.”

The group also collaborated with scientist in British Columbia, Europe, the United States and Australia.

“I am very proud and very humbled at the same time to be part of something like this. In many ways it’s a dream come true,” Abbott said.

He added that he is not encouraging people to increase their bread and beer consumption, but to see the importance of yeast in their diets.

The findings of the team were recently published in Nature, a science journal.