Turns out your colon has more brains than we thought.
New research from Duke University has uncovered a surprising sixth sense hidden in your gut — a network of sensory cells called neuropods that act like internal taste buds. These tiny gut sensors “sniff out” nutrients and bacterial byproducts, then fire off messages to your brain via the vagus nerve to influence hunger, food choices, and even when to stop eating.
Researchers are referring to this internal radar as the “neurobiotic sense.” And it may just be the key to tackling obesity and understanding diet-linked mental health disorders.
“It’s like your gut has its own eyes and ears,” said Dr. Diego Bohórquez, a neurobiologist at Duke’s School of Medicine and lead author of the study published in Nature. “It senses what’s happening in your colon and reports back to your brain—fast.”
The study focuses on flagellin, a protein released by gut bacteria, such as Salmonella Typhimurium. In mice, when neuropod cells detected this bacterial protein using a receptor called TLR5, the brain got the message: stop eating. Mice without the receptor? They kept eating—and gained weight.
No change in behavior. Just a missing signal.
This sixth sense doesn’t just regulate appetite. Bohórquez previously showed that neuropods can even tell real sugar from artificial sweeteners—and your brain listens.
“This discovery rewrites how we think about hunger and satiety,” Bohórquez said. “It’s not just your brain deciding when you’re full—your microbes get a vote.”
Next up: exploring how diets, probiotics, and antibiotics influence this gut-brain pathway—and whether reprogramming it could help with obesity, depression, or anxiety.
Your gut may know more than you think. Listen closely.
