The role of probiotics in the treatment of depressive disorders. A critical review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.12775/JEHS.2023.48.01.003Keywords
probiotics, gut microbiota, depressionAbstract
Depressive disorders are a widespread problem in modern medicine. According to current data from the World Health Organisation, an estimated 280 million people worldwide suffer from depression. In recent years, there have been reports of a correlation between the composition of the gut microbiota and the development of depressive disorders and attempts to modify it through the use of psychobiotics.
The literature from the PubMed database published between 2018-2023 has been explored. 596 articles were selected based on the keywords "probiotics" and "depression". Six randomized clinical trials were finally included in the analysis.
As defined elsewhere, psychobiotics are probiotic bacteria which supplemented in adequate amounts, interact with the gut-brain axis and show beneficial effects on patients' mental health. Results from recent RCTs suggest that daily probiotic supplementation significantly reduces the severity of depression compared to placebo (p<0.05). Additionally, this effect may be enhanced by the combined use of a probiotic with a prebiotic. Furthermore, some researchers indicate that probiotics may lead to significant improvements in cognitive function in patients suffering from depressive disorders.
In conclusion, intestinal dysbiosis may be an important factor leading to the development of mental illness. Results of recent studies suggest that specific strains of probiotic bacteria may offer therapeutic benefits in the treatment of the aforementioned disorders. However, further clinical studies are needed to objectively confirm the relationship between gut microbiota composition and the development of depression.
References
Lubecka B, Lubecki M, Pudlo R. Epidemiologia zaburzeń lękowych i depresyjnych. Psychiatria 2022;19(1):66-77 doi: 10.5603/PSYCH.a2021.0034
World Health Organization. Depression. Published 2021. Accessed May 29, 2022. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression
Ross K. Psychobiotics: Are they the future intervention for managing depression and anxiety? A literature review. Explore (NY). 2023:S1550-8307(23)00058-7 doi: 10.1016/j.explore.2023.02.007
NFZ o zdrowiu. Depresja. Published 2023 https://ezdrowie.gov.pl/portal/home/badania-i-dane/zdrowe-dane/raporty/nfz-o-zdrowiu-depresja
Chang L, Wei Y, Hashimoto K. Brain-gut-microbiota axis in depression: A historical overview and future directions. Brain Res Bull. 2022;182:44-56 doi: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2022.02.004
Smith KS, Greene MW, Babu JR, Frugé AD. Psychobiotics as treatment for anxiety, depression, and related symptoms: a systematic review. Nutr Neurosci. 2021;24(12):963-977 doi: 10.1080/1028415X.2019.1701220
Wardziukiewicz W, Stachowska E. The influence of the intestinal microbiota and its modifications on the well-being of patients with depression. Postepy Hig Med Dosw 2020;74:314-321 doi: 10.5604/01.3001.0014.3416
Cheng LH, Liu YW, Wu CC, Wang S, Tsai YC. Psychobiotics in mental health, neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders. J Food Drug Anal. 2019;27(3):632-648 doi: 10.1016/j.jfda.2019.01.002
Rea K, Dinan TG, Cryan JF (2016) The microbiome: a key regulator of stress and neuroinflammation. Neurobiol Stress 2016;4:23-33 doi: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2016.03.001
Borre YE, O’Keeffe GW, Clarke G, Stanton C, Dinan TG, Cryan JF (2014) Microbiota and neurodevelopmental windows: implications for brain disorders. Trends Mole Med 2014;20(9):509–518 doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2014.05.002
Tian P, Chen Y, Zhu H, Wang L, Qian X, Zou R, Zhao J, Zhang H, Qian L, Wang Q, Wang G, Chen W. Bifidobacterium breve CCFM1025 attenuates major depression disorder via regulating gut microbiome and tryptophan metabolism: A randomized clinical trial Brain, Behavior, and Immunity 2022;100:233-241 doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.11.023
Kazemi A, Noorbala AA, Azam K, Eskandari MH, Djafarian K. Effect of probiotic and prebiotic vs placebo on psychological outcomes in patients with major depressive disorder: A randomized clinical trial Clin Nutr. 2019;38(2):522-528 doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2018.04.010
Haghighat N, Rajabi S, Mohammadshahi M. Effect of synbiotic and probiotic supplementation on serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor level, depression and anxiety symptoms in hemodialysis patients: a randomized, double-blinded, clinical trial Neutr Neurosci 2021;24(6):490-499 doi: 10.1080/1028415X.2019.1646975
Tanis K, Newton S, Duman R. Targeting neurotrophic/growth factor expression and signaling for antidepressant drug development. CNS Neurol Disord Drug Targets. 2008;6:151–60 doi: 10.2174/187152707780363276
Chahwan B, Kwan S, Isik A, van Hemert S, Burke C, Roberts L. Gut feelings: A randomised, triple-blind, placebo-controlled trial of probiotics for depressive symptoms J Affect Disord 2019;253:317-326 doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2019.04.097
Rudzki L, Ostrowska L, Pawlak D, Małus A, Pawlak K, Waszkiewicz N, Szulc A. Probiotic Lactobacillus Plantarum 299v decreases kynurenine concentration and improves cognitive functions in patients with major depression: A double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled study Psychoneuroendocrinology 2019;100:213-222 doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.10.010.
Schneider E, Doll JPK, Schweinfurth N, Kettelhack C, Schaub AC, Yamanbaeva G, Varghese N, Mählmann L, Brand S, Eckert A, Borgwardt S, Lang UE, Schmidt A. Effect of short-term, high-dose probiotic supplementation on cognition, related brain functions and BDNF in patients with depression: a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial J Psychiatry Neurosci 2023;48(1):E23-E33 doi: 10.1503/jpn.220117
Dinan TG, Stanton C, Cryan JF. Psychobiotics: A Novel Class of Psychotropic. Biological Psychiatry 2013;74(10):720-726 doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.05.001
Sarkar A, Lehto SM, Harty S, Dinan TG, Cryan JF, Burnet P (2016) Psychobiotics and the manipulation of bacteria-gut-brain signals. Trends Neurosci 39(11):763–781
Sharma R., Gupta D., Mehrotra R., Mago P. Psychobiotics: the next-generation probiotics for the brain. Curr Microbiol. 2021;78(2):449–463 doi: 10.1007/s00284-020-02289-5
Del Toro-Barbosa M, Hurtado-Romero A, Garcia-Amezquita LE, García-Cayuela T. Psychobiotics: Mechanisms of Action, Evaluation Methods and Effectiveness in Applications with Food Products. Nutrients. 2020;12(12):3896 doi: 10.3390/nu12123896
Karakuła-Juchnowicz H, Pankowicz H, Juchnowicz D, Szachta P, Małecka-Massalska T. Psychobiotics: new possibilities for treatment of affective disorders? Farmakoterapia w Psychiatrii i Neurologii 2015;31(3–4):229–242 doi: 10.17393/fpn.2016.01.005
Logan A.C., Jacka F.N., Craig J.M., Prescott S.L. The microbiome and mental health: looking back, moving forward with lessons from allergic diseases. Clin Psychopharmacol Neurosci. 2016;14(2):131-47 doi: 10.9758/cpn.2016.14.2.131
Eloe-Fadrosh EA, Brady A, Crabtree J, Drabek EF, Ma B, Mahurkar A, Ravel J, Haverkamp M, Fiorino AM, Botelho C, Andreyeva I, Hibberd PL, Fraser CM. Functional dynamics of the gut microbiome in elderly people during probiotic consumption. mBio. 2015;6(2):e00231-15 doi: 10.1128/mBio.00231-15
Dinan T.G., Cryan J.F. Brain-Gut-Microbiota Axis and Mental Health. Psychosom Med. 2017;79(8):920-926 doi: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000519
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Aneta Głaz, Kinga Knop-Chodyła, Anna Kochanowska-Mazurek, Damian Wach, Zuzanna Piasecka, Ewelina Wesołek, Beata Kasztelan-Szczerbińska, Barbara Skrzydło-Radomańska
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The periodical offers access to content in the Open Access system under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0
Stats
Number of views and downloads: 653
Number of citations: 0
