Gut microbiota’s effect on mental health: The gut-brain axis

The bidirectional communication between the central nervous system and gut microbiota, referred to as the gut-brain-axis, has been of significant interest in recent years. Increasing evidence has associated gut microbiota to both gastrointestinal and extragastrointestinal diseases. Dysbiosis and inflammation of the gut have been linked to causing several mental illnesses including anxiety and depression, which are prevalent in society today. Probiotics have the ability to restore normal microbial balance, and therefore have a potential role in the treatment and prevention of anxiety and depression. This review aims to discuss the development of the gut microbiota, the linkage of dysbiosis to anxiety and depression, and possible applications of probiotics to reduce symptoms.

[1]  H. Mayberg,et al.  Stuck in a rut: rethinking depression and its treatment , 2011, Trends in Neurosciences.

[2]  L. Colzato,et al.  A randomized controlled trial to test the effect of multispecies probiotics on cognitive reactivity to sad mood , 2015, Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.

[3]  V. Bhandari,et al.  The Human Neonatal Gut Microbiome: A Brief Review , 2015, Front. Pediatr..

[4]  E. Dempsey,et al.  The individual-specific and diverse nature of the preterm infant microbiota , 2013, Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal and Neonatal Edition.

[5]  J. Neu,et al.  Distortions in Development of Intestinal Microbiota Associated with Late Onset Sepsis in Preterm Infants , 2013, PloS one.

[6]  E. Alhoniemi,et al.  Lactobacillus acidophilus supplementation in human subjects and their resistance to enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli infection , 2013, British Journal of Nutrition.

[7]  R. Wind,et al.  Intestinal microbiology in early life: specific prebiotics can have similar functionalities as human-milk oligosaccharides. , 2013, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[8]  P. Acton,et al.  Peripheral Administration of Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha Induces Neuroinflammation and Sickness but Not Depressive-Like Behavior in Mice , 2015, BioMed research international.

[9]  F. Islami,et al.  Pickled vegetables and the risk of oesophageal cancer: a meta-analysis , 2009, British Journal of Cancer.

[10]  Xuewu Zhang,et al.  Modulation of Gut Microbiota-Brain Axis by Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Diet. , 2015, Journal of agricultural and food chemistry.

[11]  Ashwini Sharan,et al.  An Evaluation of Neuroplasticity and Behavior After Deep Brain Stimulation of the Nucleus Accumbens in an Animal Model of Depression , 2011, Neurosurgery.

[12]  O. Goulet.  Potential role of the intestinal microbiota in programming health and disease. , 2015, Nutrition reviews.

[13]  A. Berger,et al.  Probiotics (Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum) prevent NEC in VLBW infants fed breast milk but not formula , 2015, Pediatric Research.

[14]  T. Dinan,et al.  Targeting the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: Prebiotics Have Anxiolytic and Antidepressant-like Effects and Reverse the Impact of Chronic Stress in Mice , 2017, Biological Psychiatry.

[15]  F. A. Schroeder,et al.  Antidepressant-Like Effects of the Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor, Sodium Butyrate, in the Mouse , 2007, Biological Psychiatry.

[16]  S. Dowd,et al.  Prenatal stress affects placental cytokines and neurotrophins, commensal microbes, and anxiety-like behavior in adult female offspring , 2017, Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.

[17]  H. Tilg,et al.  Intestinal permeability – a new target for disease prevention and therapy , 2014, BMC Gastroenterology.

[18]  R. Knight,et al.  The human microbiome project: exploring the microbial part of ourselves in a changing world , 2022 .

[19]  Katherine H. Huang,et al.  Structure, Function and Diversity of the Healthy Human Microbiome , 2012, Nature.

[20]  J. Bugajski,et al.  Cytokines, prostaglandins and nitric oxide in the regulation of stress-response systems , 2013, Pharmacological reports : PR.

[21]  W. MacNaughton,et al.  Probiotics Improve Inflammation-Associated Sickness Behavior by Altering Communication between the Peripheral Immune System and the Brain , 2015, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[22]  V. Théodorou,et al.  Prevention of gut leakiness by a probiotic treatment leads to attenuated HPA response to an acute psychological stress in rats , 2012, Psychoneuroendocrinology.

[23]  T. Dinan,et al.  Mind-altering Microorganisms: the Impact of the Gut Microbiota on Brain and Behaviour , 2022 .

[24]  Anoop Kumar,et al.  Lactobacillus acidophilus counteracts enteropathogenic E. coli-induced inhibition of butyrate uptake in intestinal epithelial cells. , 2015, American journal of physiology. Gastrointestinal and liver physiology.

[25]  C. Ohland,et al.  Effects of Lactobacillus helveticus on murine behavior are dependent on diet and genotype and correlate with alterations in the gut microbiome , 2013, Psychoneuroendocrinology.

[26]  J. Leza,et al.  Endogenous cannabinoid system regulates intestinal barrier function in vivo through cannabinoid type 1 receptor activation. , 2012, American journal of physiology. Gastrointestinal and liver physiology.

[27]  A. Aydın,et al.  Microbiota–Gut–Brain Axis: Yeast Species Isolated from Stool Samples of Children with Suspected or Diagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorders and In Vitro Susceptibility Against Nystatin and Fluconazole , 2015, Mycopathologia.

[28]  J. Foster,et al.  Reduced anxiety‐like behavior and central neurochemical change in germ‐free mice , 2011, Neurogastroenterology and motility : the official journal of the European Gastrointestinal Motility Society.

[29]  M. Maes,et al.  So depression is an inflammatory disease, but where does the inflammation come from? , 2013, BMC Medicine.

[30]  J. Foster,et al.  Gut–brain axis: how the microbiome influences anxiety and depression , 2013, Trends in Neurosciences.

[31]  P. Cowen,et al.  Prebiotic intake reduces the waking cortisol response and alters emotional bias in healthy volunteers , 2014, Psychopharmacology.

[32]  K. Barrett,et al.  Probiotics normalize the gut-brain-microbiota axis in immunodeficient mice. , 2014, American journal of physiology. Gastrointestinal and liver physiology.

[33]  C. Burrus.  A biochemical rationale for the interaction between gastrointestinal yeast and autism. , 2012, Medical hypotheses.

[34]  A. Morgan,et al.  Differential effects of two probiotics on the risks of eczema and atopy associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms to Toll‐like receptors , 2015, Pediatric allergy and immunology : official publication of the European Society of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.

[35]  M. Messaoudi,et al.  Assessment of psychotropic-like properties of a probiotic formulation (Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175) in rats and human subjects , 2010, British Journal of Nutrition.

[36]  E. Purdom,et al.  Diversity of the Human Intestinal Microbial Flora , 2005, Science.

[37]  M. Carabotti,et al.  The gut-brain axis: interactions between enteric microbiota, central and enteric nervous systems , 2015, Annals of gastroenterology.

[38]  E. Mayer,et al.  Principles and clinical implications of the brain–gut–enteric microbiota axis , 2009, Nature Reviews Gastroenterology &Hepatology.

[39]  Jaeuk Hwang,et al.  A Review of Fermented Foods with Beneficial Effects on Brain and Cognitive Function , 2016, Preventive nutrition and food science.

[40]  R. Sinha,et al.  Associations between dietary habits and body mass index with gut microbiota composition and fecal water genotoxicity: an observational study in African American and Caucasian American volunteers , 2009, Nutrition journal.

[41]  L. Desbonnet,et al.  The probiotic Bifidobacteria infantis: An assessment of potential antidepressant properties in the rat. , 2008, Journal of psychiatric research.

[42]  Mak Adam Daulatzai,et al.  Non-celiac gluten sensitivity triggers gut dysbiosis, neuroinflammation, gut-brain axis dysfunction, and vulnerability for dementia. , 2015, CNS & neurological disorders drug targets.

[43]  John F. Cryan,et al.  Psychobiotics: A Novel Class of Psychotropic , 2013, Biological Psychiatry.

[44]  S. O'Mahony,et al.  Convergence of neuro-endocrine-immune pathways in the pathophysiology of irritable bowel syndrome. , 2014, World journal of gastroenterology.

[45]  N. Mandras,et al.  Probiotics and gut health in infants: A preliminary case-control observational study about early treatment with Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938. , 2015, Clinica chimica acta; international journal of clinical chemistry.

[46]  S. Salminen,et al.  Probiotics Modulate Host-Microbe Interaction in the Placenta and Fetal Gut: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial , 2012, Neonatology.

[47]  A. Bruno,et al.  Role of negative affects in pathophysiology and clinical expression of irritable bowel syndrome. , 2014, World journal of gastroenterology.

[48]  N. Karnani,et al.  Rate of establishing the gut microbiota in infancy has consequences for future health , 2015, Gut microbes.

[49]  A. Logan,et al.  Fermented foods, microbiota, and mental health: ancient practice meets nutritional psychiatry , 2014, Journal of Physiological Anthropology.

[50]  Y. Chida,et al.  Postnatal microbial colonization programs the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal system for stress response in mice , 2004, The Journal of physiology.

[51]  Y. Belkaid,et al.  Role of the Microbiota in Immunity and Inflammation , 2014, Cell.

[52]  R. Knight,et al.  The Human Microbiome Project , 2007, Nature.

[53]  Claire Williams,et al.  Impact of consuming a milk drink containing a probiotic on mood and cognition , 2007, European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

[54]  James C B Li,et al.  Systemic effects of gut microbiota and its relationship with disease and modulation , 2015, BMC Immunology.

[55]  T. Dinan,et al.  Bifidobacteria exert strain‐specific effects on stress‐related behavior and physiology in BALB/c mice , 2014, Neurogastroenterology and motility : the official journal of the European Gastrointestinal Motility Society.

[56]  David Padua,et al.  Altered brain‐gut axis in autism: Comorbidity or causative mechanisms? , 2014, BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology.

[57]  S. Turroni,et al.  Dietary supplementation with probiotics during late pregnancy: outcome on vaginal microbiota and cytokine secretion , 2012, BMC Microbiology.

[58]  R. Knight,et al.  Moving pictures of the human microbiome , 2011, Genome Biology.

[59]  F. Bäckhed,et al.  The endocannabinoid system links gut microbiota to adipogenesis , 2010, Molecular systems biology.

[60]  A. Starkweather,et al.  Antenatal Microbiome: Potential Contributor to Fetal Programming and Establishment of the Microbiome in Offspring , 2015, Nursing research.

[61]  Mark Lyte,et al.  Probiotics function mechanistically as delivery vehicles for neuroactive compounds: Microbial endocrinology in the design and use of probiotics , 2011, BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology.

[62]  J. Foster,et al.  Psychobiotics and the gut–brain axis: in the pursuit of happiness , 2015, Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment.

[63]  P. Panigrahi,et al.  Trends and determinants of gastric bacterial colonization of preterm neonates in a NICU setting , 2015, PloS one.

[64]  Vijayakumar Praveen,et al.  Microbiome–Gut–Brain Axis: A Pathway for Improving Brainstem Serotonin Homeostasis and Successful Autoresuscitation in SIDS—A Novel Hypothesis , 2017, Front. Pediatr..

[65]  R. Talukdar,et al.  Role of the normal gut microbiota. , 2015, World journal of gastroenterology.

[66]  V. Tremaroli,et al.  Dynamics and Stabilization of the Human Gut Microbiome during the First Year of Life. , 2015, Cell host & microbe.