Metabolites – not hormones – could be delivering some of the messages between your organs

It is well established that hormones are responsible for sending signals and delivering messages between organs. For example, in humans, the male reproductive system largely sends messages through testosterone, and oestrogen is the main messenger in the female reproductive system. However, what if molecules derived from food in the gut could also send messages to the male reproductive system? 

The Gut Signalling and Metabolism group at the MRC LMS, led by Professor Irene Miguel-Aliaga, have been studying this in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster). They have found that in male fruit flies, the testes are able to send signals to their next-door neighbour, the gut, to increase the rate of sugar breakdown (carbohydrate metabolism). A product of sugar breakdown is a molecule called citrate, and research published by the group suggests that this citrate production sends messages to other parts of the body: specifically, to increase food intake and to produce mature sperm. 

The group also found that the increased capacity to generate citrate was only found in a specific part of the male gut, and that citrate had no effect on food intake in females, suggesting that citrate signalling is unique to male fruit flies. This also shows how various organs that are not part of the reproductive system, can be ‘sexualised’ according to reproductive needs.

It was traditionally thought that hormones mainly delivered messages between organs. However, there is mounting evidence that this is not the case, and there is significant interest in exploring metabolites as messengers.

Although this particular signalling pathway is not found in humans, this new evidence is an important contribution to research into how organs can use a wide range of molecules to send messages to each other, and how this can vary among different sexes.

It could help to explain why our organs are arranged in a specific way – so that they can talk properly to each other.

‘Sex Differences in Intestinal Carbohydrate Metabolism Promote Food Intake and Sperm Maturation’ was published in Cell on 8th August 2019.

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