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Review
. 2018 Mar 9;6(1):22.
doi: 10.3390/microorganisms6010022.

The Mycobiome: A Neglected Component in the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis

Raphaël Enaud  1   2   3 , Louise-Eva Vandenborght  4   5   6 , Noémie Coron  7   8   9 , Thomas Bazin  10   11 , Renaud Prevel  12 , Thierry Schaeverbeke  13   14 , Patrick Berger  15   16   17 , Michael Fayon  18   19   20 , Thierry Lamireau  21   22 , Laurence Delhaes  23   24   25
Affiliations
Review

The Mycobiome: A Neglected Component in the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis

Raphaël Enaud et al. Microorganisms. .

Abstract

In recent years, the gut microbiota has been considered as a full-fledged actor of the gut-brain axis, making it possible to take a new step in understanding the pathophysiology of both neurological and psychiatric diseases. However, most of the studies have been devoted to gut bacterial microbiota, forgetting the non-negligible fungal flora. In this review, we expose how the role of the fungal component in the microbiota-gut-brain axis is legitimate, through its interactions with both the host, especially with the immune system, and the gut bacteria. We also discuss published data that already attest to a role of the mycobiome in the microbiota-gut-brain axis, and the impact of fungi on clinical and therapeutic research.

Keywords: brain–gut axis; dysbiosis; fungus; microbiome; mycobiome; neurological disorders; psychiatric disorders.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proposed mechanisms of communication between the gut mycobiome and GBA. Figure inspired from [38,95]; for details about fungi–immune system interactions see review [49,96]. Abbreviations: CNS: central nervous system, GBA: gut–brain axis, HPAA: hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, IL: interleukin, SCFA: short chain fatty acid, TLR: Toll-like receptor.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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