A Question of Science

Are we ruled by our guts?

2026-10-28

How important is our gut microbiome and could it hold the key to new treatments for a range of different diseases? How does the gut-brain axis influence our behaviour and will poo transplants become a regular procedure on the NHS? Join our panel of experts as they discuss the secrets of our ‘second brain’ – the gut. From major advances in research to the difference between prebiotics andprobiotics.

Panel:

Prof Glenn Gibson: Emeritus Professor of Food Microbiology at the University of Reading

Prof Lindsay Hall: Chair of Microbiome Research at the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Microbiology and Infection

Prof Jatin Nagpal: Researcher at University College Cork’s APC Microbiome Ireland Centre

Prof Sheena Cruickshank: Immunologist and Professor in Public Engagement and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Manchester

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No. of episodes

25

Latest episode

2026-10-28

Where can you listen?

Science you can trust. Questions that matter.  

Join Professor Brian Cox and a panel of the world’s top scientists and experts as they tackle your questions about some of the biggest science challenges facing society today. 

Can we cure cancer? How do you separate nutrition fact from fiction? What do climate change and the march of AI mean for our future? Could we live forever? Each episode is recorded in front of a live audience and it’s their questions that drive the debate. 

Hear from the experts who actually know what they’re talking about, including Adam Rutherford, Helen Sharman, George Monbiot, Giles Yeo, Jeanette Winterson, Rory Cellan-Jones, Paul Nurse, Kevin Fong and You, Me and the Big C’s Lauren Mahon.  

With a focus on accuracy, openness, and debate, A Question of Science brings you the latest on what we know, what we don’t, and where science might take us next. 

A BBC Studios production for the Francis Crick Institute, an independent charity and world-leading research lab.