The Influence of the Gut Bacteria on the Development of Brain - Research Proposal Example

Implications of Gut Microbe mediated neurotransmitters and biosocial criminology theory Implications of Gut Microbe Mediated Neurotransmitters and Biosocial Criminology Theory Introduction The biosocial theory states that the violent street crimes like murder, rape and assault are normally committed by individuals who belong to poor minority group members. This group of people as argued by the theory is different and inferior biologically. It was first formulated by the father of criminology, Cesare Lombroso (1835-1909). According to him, serious offenders or the criminals who repeatedly engage themselves in criminal activities have some inherited criminal traits that compel them into engaging in such acts repeatedly. They act this way because they have atavistic anomalies to the primitive savages. The biosocial approach to criminology focuses on the interactions between the social and biological factors and how the two relate to crime. These theories are neurological, biochemical, genetic and evolutionary. This paper will address the neurological factors and how they relate to criminal behavior. Most of the theorists of biosocial criminology are of the opinion that individuals have the potential to be both violent and antisocial depending on the conditions of their environment. The antisocial qualities only manifest themselves under the right environmental conditions and this explains why criminals can leave committing crimes and be better persons. The Gut Microbe Mediated Neurotransmitters is one such biological concept that can be used to explain why some people engage in crimes. This paper takes a look at the theory and how it impacts on the study of criminal behavior in general and goes on to provides further evidence on the link between social behavior and the microbial organisms. The Gut Microbe Mediated Neurotransmitters The bacteria that often inhibit our intestines- the normal gut flora; have significant impact on the development of the human brain and subsequent behavior as adults. Although human beings are species that are highly evolved in terms of consciousness, these bacterial cells still determine the way we behave. Research has proven that these bacterial cells that inhabit the human skin and gut are more in number compared to the human cells. In fact it is by a very large margin, as the ratio is 10 to 1 (Jeffery, 1976). The implication of this is that we are at most one percent human and the rest is all bacterial controlled. These bacterial passengers therefore have immense control in our lives as they determine the way we relate to others and the environment at large. These bacteria are also responsible for the development of behavioural and neurological disorders. Thus in a way, they not only control the behaviour of human beings but they also complicate life as in the case of disorders. For example, the gut bacteria have an influence on how the body uses vitamin B6. This vitamin has great effect on the health of the nerve and muscle cells (Wright, Beaver & Gibson, 2010). By virtue of this, it is clear that they modulate the tolerance of the immune system and because of this reason; chances are that they have an influence on the autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis. This is where the problems begin because they also influence the behaviors that are anxiety related. For instance, in autism and other pervasive developmental disorders, some types of bacteria present in the gut are normally altered and the gastrointestinal problems aggravate the behavioural symptoms. This explains why the newly developed biochemical test for autism is based partly on the end products of the bacterial metabolism. In a study to evaluate extensively the influence of the gut bacteria on the development of brain and the biochemistry involved, the scientists used mice lacking the normal gut microflora (Matthews, & Kauzlarich, 2007). There brain chemistry, behaviour and brain development was then compared to the other mice with the normal gut bacteria. The results were amazing because the microbe free mice were more active than the other ones. In terms of behaviour, it was discovered that they were less anxious compared to the ones that were microbe colonised. Furthermore, this research also revealed that colonising an adult germ free mouse with the normal gut bacteria has no effect on the way it behaves. This could be attributed to the fact that at this level the brain is already fully developed and the levels of inhibition are relatively low if it exists at all. However, in situations where the animals were colonised by the germ early in life, the effects could be reversed. The implication of this is that there is a critical period in the development of the brain when the bacteria are very influential. Robinson (1998) asserts that this is in fact the reason why the bacteria had no effect in the first case but greatly influenced the second one as seen above. So regardless of how the intestinal guts exert their influence, the above arguments suggest that the behaviours that are directed by the brain that influence the manner in which individual interact are subjects of the interactions between the individual and the microbial organisms living in the gut. The Building Blocks of the Brain and the Neurons The brain is made up of neurons and an extracellular matrix. The neurons are the basic cell types of the brain. There are of many types but some of the common ones are, the inhibitory interneurons, pyramid cells of the cortex and glia. The pyramidal cells are made up of integrated cells owing to the fact that they have dendritic process used for the reception of signals. They have an axon that is responsible for the transmission of an excitatory signal. Research has found that there is a direct correlation between the hormonal levels and violent behaviour (Fadaei-Tehrani, & Green 2002). The hormones exert a strong influence on behaviour testerone and the other androgens that are directly related to behaviour. Testosterone in particular is related to different aggressive behaviour because high levels of the hormone often reduce the ability of an individual to socialise with the others. Individuals with high levels of Testosterone have the tendency to isolate themselves from the rest and this frees them up to deviate from the societal norms. Once they are alone, they often think of nothing else apart from committing crimes and doing other bad things. When we take the example of women having their monthly periods, we realise that they are normally very aggressive, hostile and easily irritable. This is purely due to the high levels of Testosterone in them during this time period. As a matter of fact, this explains the big percentage of women engaging in crimes during their menstrual cycle. Conditions such as lesions, tumors, injury and disease have been linked with different psychological problems including psychic episodes, personality changes and hallucinations. For instance, people with tumors are vulnerable to homicidal attacks, depression, temper outbursts and irritability. This goes hand in hand with the diseases of the nervous system because most of them are also linked to changes in personality. Diseases like cerebral arteriosclerosis, Huntington’s chorea, epilepsy, cerebral arteriosclerosis and Wernicke-Korsakoffs are all linked with personality changes. A disease like the Wernicke-Korsakoffs, for instance is a brain disorder that involves the loss of specific functions of the brain. It is caused by the deficiency of thiamine, and once it occurs then the personality will obviously be altered because the brain will no longer be able to perform certain functions. Wernicke’s encephalopathy on the other hand, is a condition that involves the damage to multiple nerves in both the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. This is a condition that mostly affects individuals who have used alcohol for a very long time period. Once they are hit with this condition, their behaviour will obviously change because their reasoning changes totally. From the above discussion, it is evident that the diseases that tend to interfere with memory, orientation, and emotions often lead to situations like rage, anger and easy irritability. Once this happens then the affected persons are very likely to engage themselves in criminal activities because of the emotional instability. It is therefore important for the people in charge of crime deterrence like the prison warders and the general police to be aware of such factors in order to be able to offer guidance to criminals. It is only through the comprehension of the motives behind the crimes that a solution can be found and order be restored in the society. References Fadaei-Tehrani, R., & Green, T. M. (2002). Crime and society. International Journal of Social Economics, 29(9), 781-795 Jeffery, C. R. (1976). Criminal behavior and the physical environment A perspective. The American Behavioral Scientist (Pre-1986), 20(2), 149 Matthews, R. A., & Kauzlarich, D. (2007). State crimes and state harms: A tale of two definitional frameworks. Crime, Law and Social Change, 48(1-2), 43-55. Robinson, M. B. (1998). Integrating criminologies. Crime, Law and Social Change, 29(1), 85-94. Wright, J. P., Beaver, K. M., & Gibson, C. L. (2010). Behavioral stability as an emergent process: Toward a coherence theory of concentrated personal disadvantage. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39(9), 1080-1096 Read More