The microbiome-gut-brain axis in nutritional neuroscience

ABSTRACT

Emerging evidence is highlighting the microbiome as a key regulator of the effect of nutrition on gut-brain axis signaling. Nevertheless, it is not yet clear whether the impact of nutrition is moderating the microbiota-gut-brain interaction or if diet has a mediating role on microbiota composition and function to influence central nervous system function, brain phenotypes and behavior. Mechanistic evidence from cell-based in vitro studies, animal models and preclinical intervention studies are linking the gut microbiota to the effects of diet on brain function, but they have had limited translation to human intervention studies. While increasing evidence demonstrates the triangulating relationship between diet, microbiota, and brain function across the lifespan, future mechanistic and translational studies in the field of microbiota and nutritional neuroscience are warranted to inform potential strategies for prevention and management of several neurological, neurodevelopmental, neurodegenerative, and psychiatric disorders. This brief primer provides an overview of the most recent advances in the nutritional neuroscience – microbiome field, highlighting significant opportunities for future research.

KEYWORDS:

• Microbiota
• gut-brain axis
• nutrition
• diet
• neuroscience
• mechanism
• translation
• behaviour

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Correction

Disclosure statement

Dr Schellekens has received research funding from Cremo, Tate & Lyle, Fonterra, Pharmavite, Pepsico, 4D Pharma, and Food for Health Ireland; has been an invited speaker at meetings organized by Yakult. Prof. Cryan has received research funding from 4D Pharma, Cremo, Dupont, Mead Johnson, Nutricia, and Pharmavite; has been an invited speaker at meetings organized by Alimentary Health, Alkermes, Ordesa, and Yakult; and has served as a consultant for Alkermes and Nestle. This support neither influenced nor constrained the contents of this article.

Data availability statement

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.

Correction Statement

This article was originally published with errors, which have now been corrected in the online version. Please see Correction (http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1028415X.2022.2142761).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a grant from Science Foundation Ireland to APC Microbiome Ireland: [Grant Number SFI/12/RC/2273_P2].

Notes on contributors

Harriët Schellekens

Dr. Harriët Schellekens is a lecturer in the department of Anatomy & Neuroscience at University College Cork, Ireland, and a funded investigator at APC Microbiome Ireland. Dr. Schellekens investigates the impact of diet & nutrition and the gut microbiome on human health and physiology across the lifespan. Her laboratory investigates the mechanism of the bi-directional communication between brain and gut microbiota, including immune-neuroendocrine pathways, gut-brain axis receptors, and signaling via microbiota-derived metabolites. She uses mechanistic and translational studies bridging basic and clinical aspects of neuroscience and nutrition to investigate the concept of the link between metabolic disease and mental health, and the potential amelioration of both via microbiome targeted approaches. Dr. Schellekens has published over 62 publications, with >3780 citations and a H-index of 26.

Gabriela Ribeiro

Dr. Gabriela Ribeiro is a registered dietitian with postdoctoral training in gut-microbiota-brain-axis at APC Microbiome, University College Cork in Ireland, under the supervision of Professor John Cryan. Gabriela obtained a PhD in Neuroscience from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon (Portugal) and developed her work in reward-related markers of obesity and predictors of weight loss in bariatric surgery, including sweet intensity perception. Gabriela is currently an invited assistant Professor at NOVA Medical School (Lisbon, Portugal) and aims to continue her research on reward mechanisms and obesity, integrating novel knowledge on the gut microbiome.

Cristina Cuesta-Marti

Cristina Cuesta-Marti is a 1st year PhD student under supervision of Dr. Schellekens and Professor Ger Clarke in APC Microbiome Ireland. She investigates if microbiota targeted approaches can modulate the central regulation of satiety, food reward and stress.

John F. Cryan

John F. Cryan is Professor & Chair, Department of Anatomy & Neuroscience, University College Cork and was appointed Vice President for Research & Innovation in March 2021. He is also a Principal Investigator in the APC Microbiome Institute. He is co-author of the bestselling “The Psychobiotic Revolution: Mood, Food, and the New Science of the Gut-Brain Connection” (National Geographic Press, 2017). Professor Cryan's current research interests include the neurobiological basis of stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders including depression, anxiety and drug dependence. His group is focused on understanding the interaction between brain, gut & microbiome and how it applies to stress and immune-related disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome and obesity and neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism. Professor Cryan has published over 600 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and has a H-index of 146, with over 86.000 citations.