Impact of the gut microbiota on the neuroendocrine and behavioural responses to stress in rodents

Abstract

The gastro-intestinal tract hosts a complex microbial ecosystem, the gut microbiota, whose collective genome coding capacity exceeds that of the host genome. The gut microbiota is nowadays regarded as a full organ, likely to contribute to the development of pathologies when its dynamic balance is disrupted (dysbiosis). In the last decade, evidence emerged that the gut microbiota influences brain development and function. In particular, comparisons between germ-free and conventional laboratory rodents showed that the absence of the gut microbiota exacerbates the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) system reactivity to stress and alters the anxiety-like behaviour. Furthermore, the dysfunctions observed in germ-free animals can be corrected if the gut microbiota is restored in early life but not in adulthood, suggesting a critical period for microbiota imprinting on the responsiveness to stress. The modes of action are still to be deciphered. They may involve transport of neuroactive bacterial metabolites to the brain through the bloodstream, stimulation of the vagus nerve or of entero-endocrine cells, or modulation of the immune system and, consequently, of the inflammatory status. The discovery that the gut microbiota regulates the neuroendocrine and behavioural responses to stress paves the way for the hypothesis that gut microbiota dysbioses could contribute to the pathophysiology of anxiety-related disorders. In this regard, treatments of anxiety-prone rodent strains with probiotics or antibiotics aimed at modifying their gut microbiota have shown an anxiolytic-like activity. Clinical trials are now needed to know if results obtained in preclinical studies can translate to humans.