Amazing stuff! How long will it take so humans can exploit this research to improve human brain function?
Metabolites produced by bacteria in the gut can travel to the brain and alter emotional behavior or promote plasticity.
Brain Plasticity
"Now, a study published January 11 in Cell Reports finds that the environment could act indirectly: living in enriched environments changes the animals’ gut microbiota, which appears to modulate plasticity. ...
Conversely, when the researchers transferred feces, with their associated microbes, from donor mice living in an enriched environment to mice living in standard housing, they found that doing so “made the recipient mice plastic even if they did not experience the enriched environment ...
Conversely, plasticity, as measured using monocular deprivation, was promoted when mice reared in standard cages were fed with a mixture of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), metabolites produced by gut microbes. ..."
Conversely, when the researchers transferred feces, with their associated microbes, from donor mice living in an enriched environment to mice living in standard housing, they found that doing so “made the recipient mice plastic even if they did not experience the enriched environment ...
Conversely, plasticity, as measured using monocular deprivation, was promoted when mice reared in standard cages were fed with a mixture of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), metabolites produced by gut microbes. ..."
From the abstract:
"... Here, we ... revealing that gut microbiota signals are crucial for E[nriched]E[nvironment]-driven plasticity. Developmental analysis reveals striking differences in intestinal bacteria composition between EE and standard rearing (ST) mice, as well as enhanced levels of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) in EE mice. Depleting the microbiota of EE mice with antibiotics strongly decreases SCFA and prevents activation of adult ocular dominance plasticity, spine dynamics, and microglia rearrangement. SCFA treatment in ST mice mimics EE induction of ocular dominance plasticity and microglial remodeling. Remarkably, transferring the microbiota of EE mice to ST recipients activates adult ocular dominance plasticity. Thus, experience-dependent changes in gut microbiota regulate brain plasticity."
The gut microbiota of environmentally enriched mice regulates visual cortical plasticity
Emotional Behaviors
"... studies in the last few years have linked the microbiome to brain function and mood. People with certain neurological conditions have distinctly different gut bacteria communities. Further, studies in mice have shown that manipulating these communities can alter neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative states, either ameliorating or exacerbating symptoms. ..."
From the abstract:
"... In mice, the gut microbiota impacts behaviour, modulates neurotransmitter production in the gut and brain, and influences brain development and myelination patterns. ... Here we identified biosynthetic genes from the gut microbiome that mediate the conversion of dietary tyrosine to 4-ethylphenol (4EP), and bioengineered gut bacteria to selectively produce 4EPS in mice. 4EPS entered the brain and was associated with changes in region-specific activity and functional connectivity. ... Mice colonized with 4EP-producing bacteria exhibited reduced myelination of neuronal axons. Altered myelination dynamics in the brain have been associated with behavioural outcomes. Accordingly, we observed that mice exposed to 4EPS displayed anxiety-like behaviours, and pharmacological treatments that promote oligodendrocyte differentiation prevented the behavioural effects of 4EPS. These findings reveal that a gut-derived molecule influences complex behaviours in mice through effects on oligodendrocyte function and myelin patterning in the brain."
A Microbial Compound in the Gut Leads to Anxious Behaviors in Mice A Caltech-led team of researchers has discovered that a small-molecule metabolite, produced by bacteria that reside in the mouse gut, can travel to the brain and alter the function of brain cells, leading to increased anxiety in mice. The work helps uncover a molecular explanation for recent observations that gut microbiome changes are associated with complex emotional behaviors.
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