New paper out by Vivek Philip and colleagues, describing fascinating findings on the significance of gut microbiota and the synchronization of important gene pathways in the brain of mice.

Interestingly, recolonization of mice with “normal” gut microbiota normalized the expression of genes, suggesting a key role for the microbiome in disease and recovery.

Abstract:

Studies of germ-free (GF) mice demonstrate that gut microbiota can influence behaviour by modulating neurochemical pathways in the brain, and that bacterial colonization normalizes behavioural deficits in GF-mice. Since disrupted GABAergic and glutamatergic signaling are reported in mood disorders, this study investigated the effect of gut microbiota manipulations on EIB-relevant gene expression in the brain.

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This image shows various node-network diagrams representing different parts of the brain, including the hippocampus, amygdala, and the pre-frontal cortex. The nodes represent genes and edges repreesnt correlations between genes. The image shows different network attributes emerging for different groups of mice, including germ-free mice, mono-colonized mice, and full biome-colonized.
Region-specific effects of microbiota on gene co-expression networks.
Contributors