Behavioral Transplants

Lab mice show off their personalities.
Image by Aaron Logan at Wikimedia.

Twelve Canadian scientists accomplished something we’ve only heard about in science fiction: They transplanted a set of behaviors from one set of animals to another set of animals! And you’ll never guess what part of these animals they physically transplanted to achieve this feat: It was not their brains; It was not their hearts; It was their gut-contents! We have all heard the phrase “you are what you eat”, but scientists have discovered the real truth: You are what you poop.

Today at Accumulating Glitches , I talk about the microbes in our guts that affect our personalities and how swapping personalities may be as simple as swapping poop! Check out the article here.