The narrative review of recent studies in understanding the relationship between gut (microbiota)-brain axis, nutrition and cognitive function
Abstract
The concept of the gut (microbiota)-brain axis, which influences the development and function of the gastrointestinal, immune, neuroendocrine, and metabolic systems, is gaining popularity. Recent animal studies have demonstrated that the gut (microbiota)-brain axis also plays a role in establishing cognitive function. It is known that a disruption in the environment's microbiota balance can increase disease susceptibility in children. Historically, it has been hypothesized that neurodevelopmental disorders are the results of a disruption in children’s health. However, it is becoming clear that the gut microbiota and the central nervous system communicate in both directions, which could explain how microbiota affects cognitive function. Dietary factors also play important role in the central nervous system via the gut (microbiota)-brain axis, demonstrating the importance of nutrition in optimizing cognitive function. This narrative review of recently published studies and current knowledge aims to elucidate the relationship between the gut (microbiota)-brain axis and cognitive function, as well as the variables that may influence it.Downloads
References
Tamburini S, Shen N, Wu HC, Clemente JC. The microbiome in early life: Implications for health outcomes. Vol. 22, Nature Medicine. Nature Publishing Group; 2016. p. 713–22.
Cong X, Xu W, Romisher R, Poveda S, Forte S, Starkweather A, et al. Gut Microbiome and Infant Health: Brain-Gut-Microbiota Axis and Host Genetic Factors. 2016.
Cryan JF, Dinan TG. Mind-altering microorganisms: The impact of the gut microbiota on brain and behaviour. Vol. 13, Nature Reviews Neuroscience. 2012. p. 701–12.
Gareau MG. Microbiota-gut-brain axis and cognitive function. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2014;817:357–71.
Carlson AL, Xia K, Azcarate-Peril MA, Goldman BD, Ahn M, Styner MA, et al. Infant Gut Microbiome Associated With Cognitive Development. Biol Psychiatry. 2018 Jan 15;83(2):148–59.
Gareau MG, Wine E, Rodrigues DM, Cho JH, Whary MT, Philpott DJ, et al. Bacterial infection causes stress-induced memory dysfunction in mice. Gut. 2011 Mar;60(3):307–17.
Li W, Dowd SE, Scurlock B, Acosta-Martinez V, Lyte M. Memory and learning behavior in mice is temporally associated with diet-induced alterations in gut bacteria. Physiol Behav. 2009 Mar 23;96(4–5):557–67.
Neufeld KM, Kang N, Bienenstock J, Foster JA. Reduced anxiety-like behavior and central neurochemical change in germ-free mice. Neurogastroenterology and Motility. 2011 Mar;23(3).
Heijtz RD, Wang S, Anuar F, Qian Y, Björkholm B, Samuelsson A, et al. Normal gut microbiota modulates brain development and behavior. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Feb 15;108(7):3047–52.
Sudo N, Chida Y, Aiba Y, Sonoda J, Oyama N, Yu XN, et al. Postnatal microbial colonization programs the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system for stress response in mice. Journal of Physiology. 2004 Jul 1;558(1):263–75.
Conlon MA, Bird AR. The impact of diet and lifestyle on gut microbiota and human health. Vol. 7, Nutrients. MDPI AG; 2015. p. 17–44.
Sherwin E, Rea K, Dinan TG, Cryan JF. A gut (microbiome) feeling about the brain. Vol. 32, Current Opinion in Gastroenterology. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2016. p. 96–102.
Cusick SE, Georgieff MK. The Role of Nutrition in Brain Development: The Golden Opportunity of the “First 1000 Days.” Journal of Pediatrics. 2016 Aug 1;175:16–21.
Moya-Pérez A, Luczynski P, Renes IB, Wang S, Borre Y, Ryan CA, et al. Intervention strategies for cesarean section- induced alterations in the microbiota-gut-brain axis. Nutr Rev. 2017 Apr 1;75(4):225–40.
Chunchai T, Thunapong W, Yasom S, Wanchai K, Eaimworawuthikul S, Metzler G, et al. Decreased Microglial Activation Through Gut-brain Axis by Prebiotics, Probiotics, or Synbiotics Effectively Restored Cognitive Function in Obese-insulin Resistant Rats. J Neuroinflammation. 2018 Jan 9;15(1).
Baldi S, Mundula T, Nannini G, Amedei A. Microbiota shaping - The effects of probiotics, prebiotics, and fecal microbiota transplant on cognitive functions: A systematic review. Vol. 27, World Journal of Gastroenterology. Baishideng Publishing Group Co; 2021. p. 6715–32.
Davari S, Talaei SA, Alaei H, Salami M. Probiotics treatment improves diabetes-induced impairment of synaptic activity and cognitive function: Behavioral and electrophysiological proofs for microbiome-gut-brain axis. Neuroscience. 2013 Jun 4;240:287–96.
Bravo JA, Forsythe P, Chew M v., Escaravage E, Savignac HM, Dinan TG, et al. Ingestion of Lactobacillus strain regulates emotional behavior and central GABA receptor expression in a mouse via the vagus nerve. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Oct 20;108(38):16050–5.
Dauncey MJ. New insights into nutrition and cognitive neuroscience. In: Proceedings of the Nutrition Society. 2009. p. 408–15.
Dauncey MJ, Bicknell RJ. Nutrition and neurodevelopment: mechanisms of developmental dysfunction and disease in later life. Vol. 12, Nutrition Research Reviews. 1999.
Novak EM, Dyer RA, Innis SM. High dietary ω-6 fatty acids contribute to reduced docosahexaenoic acid in the developing brain and inhibit secondary neurite growth. Brain Res. 2008 Oct 27;1237:136–45.
Wang T, Cao S, Li D, Chen F, Jiang Q, Zeng J. Association between dietary patterns and cognitive ability in Chinese children aged 10–15 years: evidence from the 2010 China Family Panel Studies. BMC Public Health. 2021 Dec 1;21(1).
Leventakou V, Roumeliotaki T, Sarri K, Koutra K, Kampouri M, Kyriklaki A, et al. Dietary patterns in early childhood and child cognitive and psychomotor development: The Rhea mother-child cohort study in Crete. British Journal of Nutrition. 2016 Apr 28;115(8):1431–7.
Obrenovich MEM. Leaky gut, leaky brain? Vol. 6, Microorganisms. MDPI; 2018.
Bilbo SD, Newsum NJ, Sprunger DB, Watkins LR, Rudy JW, Maier SF. Differential effects of neonatal handling on early life infection-induced alterations in cognition in adulthood. Brain Behav Immun. 2007 Mar;21(3):332–42.
Jašarević E, Rodgers AB, Bale TL. A novel role for maternal stress and microbial transmission in early life programming and neurodevelopment. Vol. 1, Neurobiology of Stress. Elsevier Inc.; 2015. p. 81–8.
O’Mahony SM, Marchesi JR, Scully P, Codling C, Ceolho AM, Quigley EMM, et al. Early Life Stress Alters Behavior, Immunity, and Microbiota in Rats: Implications for Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Psychiatric Illnesses. Biol Psychiatry. 2009 Feb 1;65(3):263–7.
Bailey MT, Dowd SE, Galley JD, Hufnagle AR, Allen RG, Lyte M. Exposure to a social stressor alters the structure of the intestinal microbiota: Implications for stressor-induced immunomodulation. Brain Behav Immun. 2011 Mar;25(3):397–407.
Clarke G, Grenham S, Scully P, Fitzgerald P, Moloney RD, Shanahan F, et al. The microbiome-gut-brain axis during early life regulates the hippocampal serotonergic system in a sex-dependent manner. Mol Psychiatry. 2013 Jun;18(6):666–73.
Riedel W, Nat han P, Schmitt J, Wingen M, Ramaekers J, Evers E, et al. Serotonin and Human Cognitive Performance. Curr Pharm Des. 2006;12:2473–86.
O’Brien MER, Anderson H, Kaukel E, O’Byrne K, Pawlicki M, von Pawel J, et al. SRL 172 (killed Mycobacterium vaccae) in addition to standard chemotherapy improves quality of life without affecting survival, in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer: Phase III results. Annals of Oncology. 2004;15(6):906–14.
Matthews DM, Jenks SM. Ingestion of Mycobacterium vaccae decreases anxiety-related behavior and improves learning in mice. Behavioural Processes. 2013 Jun;96:27–35.
Lyte M, Li W, Opitz N, Gaykema RPA, Goehler LE. Induction of anxiety-like behavior in mice during the initial stages of infection with the agent of murine colonic hyperplasia Citrobacter rodentium. Physiol Behav. 2006 Oct 30;89(3):350–7.
Goehler LE, Park SM, Opitz N, Lyte M, Gaykema RPA. Campylobacter jejuni infection increases anxiety-like behavior in the holeboard: possible anatomical substrates for viscerosensory modulation of exploratory behavior. Brain Behav Immun. 2008;22(3):354–66.
Christian LM, Galley JD, Hade EM, Schoppe-Sullivan S, Kamp Dush C, Bailey MT. Gut microbiome composition is associated with temperament during early childhood. Brain Behav Immun. 2015 Mar 1;45:118–27.
Pulikkan J, Maji A, Dhakan DB, Saxena R, Mohan B, Anto MM, et al. Gut Microbial Dysbiosis in Indian Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Microb Ecol. 2018 Nov 1;76(4):1102–14.
Bojović K, Ignjatović Ð d. ica, Soković Bajić S, Vojnović Milutinović D, Tomić M, Golić N, et al. Gut Microbiota Dysbiosis Associated With Altered Production of Short Chain Fatty Acids in Children With Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2020 May 19;10.
Kvestad I, Taneja S, Hysing M, Kumar T, Bhandari N, Strand TA. Diarrhea, stimulation and growth predict neurodevelopment in young North Indian Children. PLoS One. 2015 Mar 31;10(3).
Francavilla R CFTMIFI. Intervention for dysbiosis in children born by C-section. . Ann Nutr Metab. 2018;73(3):33–9.
Tillisch K, Labus J, Kilpatrick L, Jiang Z, Stains J, Ebrat B, et al. Consumption of fermented milk product with probiotic modulates brain activity. Gastroenterology. 2013;144(7).
T. L. Hanstock, E. H. Clayton, K. M. Li, P. E. Mallet. Anxiety and aggression associated with the fermentation of carbohydrates in the hindgut of rats . Physiol Behav. 2004 Sep;82(2–3):357–68.
Ohland CL, Kish L, Bell H, Thiesen A, Hotte N, Pankiv E, et al. Effects of lactobacillus helveticus on murine behavior are dependent on diet and genotype and correlate with alterations in the gut microbiome. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2013 Sep;38(9):1738–47.
Desbonnet L, Garrett L, Clarke G, Kiely B, Cryan JF, Dinan TG. Effects of the probiotic Bifidobacterium infantis in the maternal separation model of depression. Neuroscience. 2010 Nov;170(4):1179–88.
Wall R, Marques TM, O’Sullivan O, Ross RP, Shanahan F, Quigley EM, et al. Contrasting effects of Bifidobacterium breve NCIMB 702258 and Bifidobacterium breve DPC 6330 on the composition of murine brain fatty acids and gut microbiota. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2012 May 1;95(5):1278–87.
Lew LC, Hor YY, Yusoff NAA, Choi SB, Yusoff MSB, Roslan NS, et al. Probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum P8 alleviated stress and anxiety while enhancing memory and cognition in stressed adults: A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Clinical Nutrition. 2019 Oct 1;38(5):2053–64.
Basso M, Johnstone N, Knytl P, Nauta A, Groeneveld A, Cohen Kadosh K. A Systematic Review of Psychobiotic Interventions in Children and Adolescents to Enhance Cognitive Functioning and Emotional Behavior. Vol. 14, Nutrients. MDPI; 2022.
Submitted
Copyright (c) 2023 Taufiq Fredrik Pasiak, Tjhin Wiguna, Rini Sekartini, Juwalita Surapsari, Tonny Sundjaya, Erika Wasito, Ray Wagiu Basrowi, Melissa Stephanie Kartjito
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
World Nutrition Journal is an open acces journal and under the licence of
