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Review
. 2023 Feb 14;15(4):942.
doi: 10.3390/nu15040942.

Gut-Microbiota, and Multiple Sclerosis: Background, Evidence, and Perspectives

Clelia Altieri  1 , Barbara Speranza  1 , Maria Rosaria Corbo  1 , Milena Sinigaglia  1 , Antonio Bevilacqua  1
Affiliations
Review

Gut-Microbiota, and Multiple Sclerosis: Background, Evidence, and Perspectives

Clelia Altieri et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Many scientific studies reveal a significant connection between human intestinal microbiota, eating habits, and the development of chronic-degenerative diseases; therefore, alterations in the composition and function of the microbiota may be accompanied by different chronic inflammatory mechanisms. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS), in which autoreactive immune cells attack the myelin sheaths of the neurons. The purpose of this paper was to describe the main changes that occur in the gut microbiota of MS patients, with a focus on both microbiota and its implications for health and disease, as well as the variables that influence it. Another point stressed by this paper is the role of microbiota as a triggering factor to modulate the responses of the innate and adaptive immune systems, both in the intestine and in the brain. In addition, a comprehensive overview of the taxa modified by the disease is presented, with some points on microbiota modulation as a therapeutic approach for MS. Finally, the significance of gastro-intestinal pains (indirectly related to dysbiosis) was assessed using a case study (questionnaire for MS patients), as was the willingness of MS patients to modulate gut microbiota with probiotics.

Keywords: diet; dysbiosis; gut microbiota; multiple sclerosis; probiotics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Some functions of gut microbiota [7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14]. SCFA are short-chain fatty acids.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Gut microbiota in MS patients: green, higher abundance compared to healthy subjects; red, decreased abundance; yellow, conflicting results. Built by authors using data from various references.
Figure 3
Figure 3
When did you receive your first diagnosis?
Figure 4
Figure 4
Types of multiple sclerosis among volunteers. RRMS, relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis; PPMS, primary progressive multiple sclerosis; SPMS, secondary progressive multiple sclerosis; CIS, clinically isolated syndrome.
Figure 5
Figure 5
General eating habits of the tested people (What do you usually eat or drink for breakfast?) You can choose more options.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Percentage of subjects suffering from gastrointestinal symptoms. (A) Have you had gastro-intestinal symptoms? (B) Do gastro-intestinal symptoms affect your well-being?
Figure 7
Figure 7
Awareness about probiotics and the use of probiotic foods. (A) Do you know what probiotics are? (B) Have you ever used probiotics?
Figure 8
Figure 8
Willingness to use probiotics (Would you consume probiotics if research showed that they had an effective benefit for your disease?).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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