Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Jan;15(1):135-145.
doi: 10.1007/s13311-017-0598-8.

Microbiota Signaling Pathways that Influence Neurologic Disease

Laura M Cox  1 , Howard L Weiner  2
Affiliations
Review

Microbiota Signaling Pathways that Influence Neurologic Disease

Laura M Cox et al. Neurotherapeutics. 2018 Jan.

Abstract

Though seemingly distinct and autonomous, emerging evidence suggests there is a bidirectional interaction between the intestinal microbiota and the brain. This crosstalk may play a substantial role in neurologic diseases, including anxiety, depression, autism, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and, potentially, Alzheimer's disease. Long hypothesized by Metchnikoff and others well over 100 years ago, investigations into the mind-microbe axis is now seeing a rapid resurgence of research. If specific pathways and mechanisms of interaction are understood, it could have broad therapeutic potential, as the microbiome is environmentally acquired and can be modified to promote health. This review will discuss immune, endocrine, and neural system pathways that interconnect the gut microbiota to central nervous system and discuss how these findings might be applied to neurologic disease.

Keywords: Microbiome; gastrointestinal tract; immunity; neuroendocrine signaling; neuroinflammation; neurotransmitters.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Bidirectional lines of communication between the gut microbiota and the brain. Neural, endocrine, and immune pathways mediate signals between the central nervous system (CNS) and the intestinal microbiota. The microbiota can produce a variety of neuro- and immunomodulatory substances that can either act locally on immune populations and enteroendocrine cells in the gut, or modulate distant functions in the CNS. This can alter mood, behavior, and neuroinflammatory responses. Stress signals from the brain are conducted via the efferent nerves, as well as the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, which can alter gastrointestinal function and microbiota composition. PYY = peptide YY; 5-HT, 5-hydroxytryptamine; SCFA = short-chain fatty acid; LPS = lipopolysaccharide
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Sender R, Fuchs S, Milo R. Are we really vastly outnumbered? revisiting the ratio of bacterial to host cells in humans. Cell. 2016;164(3):337–340. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.01.013. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Qin J, Li R, Raes J, et al. A human gut microbial gene catalogue established by metagenomic sequencing. Nature. 2010;464(7285):59–65. doi: 10.1038/nature08821. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Laukens D, Brinkman BM, Raes J, De Vos M, Vandenabeele P. Heterogeneity of the gut microbiome in mice: guidelines for optimizing experimental design. FEMS Microbiol. Rev. 2016;40(1):117–132. doi: 10.1093/femsre/fuv036. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tremaroli V, Bäckhed F. Functional interactions between the gut microbiota and host metabolism. Nature. 2012;489(7415):242–249. doi: 10.1038/nature11552. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cho I, Blaser MJ. The human microbiome: at the interface of health and disease. Nat Rev Genet. 2012;13(4):260–270. doi: 10.1038/nrg3182. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

MeSH terms