Probiotics in digestive, emotional, and pain-related disorders

Abstract

In recent years, interest in the relationship between gut microbiota and disease states has grown considerably. Indeed, several strategies have been employed to modify the microbiome through the administration of different diets, by the administration of antibiotics or probiotics, or even by transplantation of feces. In the present manuscript, we focus specifically on the potential application of probiotics, which seem to be a safe strategy, in the management of digestive, pain, and emotional disorders. We present evidence from animal models and human studies, notwithstanding that translation to clinic still deserves further investigation. The microbiome influences gut functions as well as neurological activity by a variety of mechanisms, which are also discussed. The design and performance of larger trials is urgently needed to verify whether these new strategies might be useful not only for the treatment of disorders affecting the gastrointestinal tract but also in the management of emotional and pain disorders not directly related to the gut.

Stress and the gut microbiota-brain axis

“…The effects of microbiota interventions have been widely studied on emotional disorders, mainly on anxiety and depression disorders and on stress. Numerous studies have evaluated the effects of probiotics on emotional disorders (revised in Roman, Abalo et al, 2018). Others microbiota interventions, such as diet, prebiotics or fecal transplant have been less explored and the evidence is scant.…”

Dysbiosis of the Gut Microbiome: A Concept Analysis

“…In contrast, stress, diet, medical interventions, and environmental factors were all identified as antecedents with direct contributions to occurrences of dysbiosis. Several studies noted that stress, emotions, and associated physiological responses impacted the composition of gut microbiota (Cong et al, 2015; Cong et al, 2017; Heitkemper, Jarrett, & Jun, 2013; Kelly et al, 2016; Newland et al, 2016; Roman, Abalo, Marco, & Cardona, 2018; Yang et al, 2016). A subset of articles focused specifically on the impact of early life stress and maternal stress in the development of the gut microbiome (Cong et al, 2015; Cong et al, 2017; Yang et al, 2016).…”

“…Consequences of dysbiosis include direct biological process effects and less directly associated symptoms and diseases. The most commonly cited consequence of dysbiosis was increased inflammation, inflammatory or immune responses, and cytokine production (Ames et al, 2017; Chung et al, 2018; Cong et al, 2015; Dubois & Gregory, 2016; Fourie et al, 2016; Greathouse et al, 2017; Heitkemper et al, 2013; Kelly et al, 2016; Lacy & Moreau, 2016; Muls et al, 2017; Roman et al, 2018; Samuel et al, 2014; Wright et al, 2018; Yang et al, 2016). Imbalanced, dysfunctional gut microbiota can trigger inflammation through a number of cascades and feedback loops.…”

“…Neural dysregulation consequences include microbial influence on the neurotransmitter production, vagal stimulation, and brain plasticity; however, much of the literature reviewed less explicitly describes theses mechanisms. (Roman et al, 2018; Slykerman et al, 2017; Yang et al, 2016). Dysbiosis can result in decreased or unbalanced production of peptides activating afferent vagal nerve endings (Yang et al, 2016).…”

“…Dysbiosis can result in decreased or unbalanced production of peptides activating afferent vagal nerve endings (Yang et al, 2016). Additional microbial metabolites can affect the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and brain-derived neurotropic factor, resulting in cognitive and affective consequences (Roman et al, 2018; Wright et al, 2018).…”