4 ms·
Reading the overview of this study - am I incorrect in thinking "correlation" not "causation" wrt the particular species of fungi (Candida tropicalis) and the b
by drvdevd 10y ago
Reading the overview of this study - am I incorrect in thinking "correlation" not "causation" wrt the particular species of fungi (Candida tropicalis) and the biofilm produced being a key factor?
- andrewflnr 10y agoI don't know, but "lockstep" is a pretty darn strong correlation, with a solid hypothesis for a causative mechanism. I'll wait to see if the treatments actually work, but as someone with a friend who suffered from this, I'm excited.
- driverdan 10y agoYou're correct. The linked story is PR and overstates the findings. As you can see by the researchers' statements they are far more cautious at stating causation.
- HillaryBriss 10y agoI couldn't find an ungated copy, but this is in the abstract: The abundance of the fungus Candida tropicalis was significantly higher in CD than in NCDR (P = 0.003) samples and positively correlated with levels of anti-Saccharomyces cerevisiae antibodies (ASCA). The abundance of C. tropicalis was positively correlated with S. marcescens and E. coli, suggesting that these organisms interact in the gut. All we know about correlation level from this is r > 0. More here: http://mbio.asm.org/content/7/5/e01250-16 http://mbio.asm.org/content/7/5/e01250-16