The Impact of Microbiota on Brain and Behavior: Mechanisms & Therapeutic Potential

Author(s):  
Yuliya E. Borre ◽  
Rachel D. Moloney ◽  
Gerard Clarke ◽  
Timothy G. Dinan ◽  
John F. Cryan
2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 317-344 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Monk ◽  
Claudia Lugo-Candelas ◽  
Caroline Trumpff

The developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis applied to neurodevelopmental outcomes asserts that the fetal origins of future development are relevant to mental health. There is a third pathway for the familial inheritance of risk for psychiatric illness beyond shared genes and the quality of parental care: the impact of pregnant women's distress—defined broadly to include perceived stress, life events, depression, and anxiety—on fetal and infant brain–behavior development. We discuss epidemiological and observational clinical data demonstrating that maternal distress is associated with children's increased risk for psychopathology: For example, high maternal anxiety is associated with a twofold increase in the risk of probable mental disorder in children. We review several biological systems hypothesized to be mechanisms by which maternal distress affects fetal and child brain and behavior development, as well as the clinical implications of studies of the developmental origins of health and disease that focus on maternal distress. Development and parenting begin before birth.


2002 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-137 ◽  

The nature and extent of the impact of gender and reproductive function on mood has been the subject of speculation and controversy for centuries. Over the past 50 years, however, it has become increasingly clear that not only is the brain a major target of reproductive steroid hormones, but additionally, the steroid hormones, as neuroregulators, create a context thai influences a broad range of brain activities; ie, neural actions and resultant behaviors are markedly different in the presence and absence of gonadal steroids. In turn, the actions of gonadal steroids are themselves context-dependent. Thus, even where it can be demonstrated thai gonadal steroids trigger mood disorders, the triggers are normal levels of gonadal steroids (to be contrasted with the mood disturbances accompanying endocrinopathies), and the mood disorders appear only in a subset of susceptible individuals. The context specificity and differential susceptibility to affective dysregulation seen in women with reproductive endocrine-related mood disorders are undoubtedly important underlying characteristics of a wide range of psychiatric disorders in which the triggers have not yet been identified. Consequently, reproductive endocrine-related mood disorders offer unparalleled promise for the identification of those contextual variables that permit biological stimuli to differentially translate into depression in individuals at risk.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gunter Schumann ◽  
JIAYUAN XU ◽  
Xiaoxuan Liu ◽  
Alex Ing ◽  
QIAOJUN LI ◽  
...  

Abstract Urbanicity is a growing environmental challenge for mental-health. While the impact of urban life on brain and behavior might be distinct in different sociocultural conditions and geographies, there might exist features shared between regions. To investigate correlations of urbanicity with brain structure and function, neuropsychology and mental illness symptoms in young people from China and Europe, we developed a remote-sensing satellite-measure termed ‘UrbanSat’ quantifying population-density, a general measure of urbanicity. UrbanSat is correlated with brain volume, surface area and brain-network-connectivity in the medial prefrontal cortex and cerebellum, which mediate its effect on perspective-taking and depression- symptoms. Susceptibility to high population-density is greatest during childhood for the cerebellum and from childhood to adolescence for the prefrontal cortex. As UrbanSat can be generalized to different geographies, it will enable assessing the impact of urbanicity on mental illness and resilience globally, especially in young people where prevention and early interventions are most effective.


2005 ◽  
Vol 30 (10) ◽  
pp. 1773-1780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Yehuda ◽  
Steven E Hyman

Nutrients ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1765 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vo Giau ◽  
Si Wu ◽  
Angelo Jamerlan ◽  
Seong An ◽  
SangYun Kim ◽  
...  

The bidirectional communication between the central nervous system (CNS) and the gut microbiota plays a pivotal role in human health. Increasing numbers of studies suggest that the gut microbiota can influence the brain and behavior of patients. Various metabolites secreted by the gut microbiota can affect the cognitive ability of patients diagnosed with neurodegenerative diseases. Nearly one in every ten Korean senior citizens suffers from Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most common form of dementia. This review highlights the impact of metabolites from the gut microbiota on communication pathways between the brain and gut, as well as the neuroinflammatory roles they may have in AD patients. The objectives of this review are as follows: (1) to examine the role of the intestinal microbiota in homeostatic communication between the gut microbiota and the brain, termed the microbiota–gut–brain (MGB) axis; (2) to determine the underlying mechanisms of signal dysfunction; and (3) to assess the impact of signal dysfunction induced by the microbiota on AD. This review will aid in understanding the microbiota of elderly people and the neuroinflammatory roles they may have in AD.


2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Lysaker ◽  
Petr Bob ◽  
Ondrej Pec ◽  
Jay Hamm ◽  
Marina Kukula ◽  
...  

AbstractDeficits in metacognitive capacity in schizophrenia can be conceptualized as existing along a spectrum from more discrete to more synthetic activities. These capacities may be of great importance in schizophrenia research given their potential to mediate and moderate the impact of illness-related factors on outcome. To explore this possibility this review summarizes research on synthetic metacognition using a paradigm in which metacognitive capacity is rated on the basis of spontaneously produced personal narratives. Evidence from a review of the literature shows that these deficits are detectable in patients with schizophrenia and are related to, but not reducible to, symptom severity and poorer neurocognitive function. Independent of symptoms and neurocognition, deficits in synthetic metacognition, which are likely linked to the brain’s ability to integrate information, are related to a range of outcomes including functional competence, learning potential, and insight. These deficits may also play a role in long term psychosocial functioning via their impact on the ability to sustain social functions.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine N. Yohn ◽  
Sophie Shifman ◽  
Alexander Garino ◽  
Emma Diethorn ◽  
Leshya Bokka ◽  
...  

AbstractSome mood disorders, such as major depressive disorder, are more prevalent in women than in men. However, historically preclinical studies in rodents have a lower inclusion rate of females than males, possibly due to the fact that behavior can be affected by the estrous cycle. Several studies have demonstrated that chronic antidepressant treatment can decrease anxiety-like behaviors and increase adult hippocampal neurogenesis in male rodents. However, very few studies have conclusively looked at the effects of antidepressants on behavior and neurogenesis across the estrous cycle in naturally cycling female rodents. Here we analyze the effects of chronic treatment with the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) fluoxetine (Prozac) on behavior and adult hippocampal neurogenesis in naturally cycling C57BL/6J females across all four phases of the estrous cycle. Interestingly, we find that the effects of fluoxetine on both behavior and adult hippocampal neurogenesis are driven by mice specifically in the estrus or diestrus phases of the estrous cycle. Taken together our data is the first to illustrate the impact of fluoxetine on brain and behavior across all four stages of the murine estrous cycle.HighlightsChronic fluoxetine reduces anxiety-like behaviors in naturally cycling female miceChronic fluoxetine increases adult hippocampal neurogenesis in naturally cycling female miceThe effects of chronic fluoxetine on behavior and adult hippocampal neurogenesis are driven by the estrus and diestrus phases of the estrous cycle


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-111

This overview will outline the current results of neuroscience research on the possible effects of digital media use on the human brain, cognition, and behavior. This is of importance due to the significant amount of time that individuals spend using digital media. Despite several positive aspects of digital media, which include the capability to effortlessly communicate with peers, even over a long distance, and their being used as training tools for students and the elderly, detrimental effects on our brains and minds have also been suggested. Neurological consequences have been observed related to internet/gaming addiction, language development, and processing of emotional signals. However, given that much of the neuroscientific research conducted up to now relies solely on self-reported parameters to assess social media usage, it is argued that neuroscientists need to include datasets with higher precision in terms of what is done on screens, for how long, and at what age.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (36) ◽  
pp. eabb9116
Author(s):  
Aubrey M. Kelly ◽  
Jie Yuen Ong ◽  
Ruth A. Witmer ◽  
Alexander G. Ophir

Although it is well appreciated that the early-life social environment asserts subsequent long-term consequences on offspring brain and behavior, the specific mechanisms that account for this relationship remain poorly understood. Using a novel assay that forced biparental pairs or single mothers to prioritize caring for offspring or themselves, we investigated the impact of parental variation on adult expression of nonapeptide-modulated behaviors in prairie voles. We demonstrated that single mothers compensate for the lack of a co-parent. Moreover, mothers choose to invest in offspring over themselves when faced with a tradeoff, whereas fathers choose to invest in themselves. Furthermore, our study suggests a pathway whereby variation in parental behavior (specifically paternal care) may lead to alterations in DNA methylation within the vasopressin receptor 1a gene and gene expression in the lateral septum. These differences are concomitant with changes in social approach, a behavior closely associated with septal vasopressin receptor function.


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