Depression and the gut

Possible approaches impacting the gut microbiota that are currently under investigation for the treatment of depression include prebiotics (non-digestive fibres which are partially digested in the gastrointestinal tract and support the growth of helpful gut bacteria), probiotics (helpful gut bacteria), engineered bacteria or faecal microbiota transplantation.³

References:

1. Marx W, Penninx BWJH, Solmi M, et al. Major depressive disorder. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2023; 9 (1): 44.
2. McGuinness AJ, Davis JA, Dawson SL, et al. A systematic review of gut microbiota composition in observational studies of major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Mol Psychiatry 2022; 27 (4): 1920–1935.
3. Zhu F, Tu H, Chen T. The microbiota–gut–brain axis in depression: the potential pathophysiological mechanisms and microbiota combined antidepression effect. Nutrients 2022; 14 (10): 2081.