微生物-肠-脑轴与抑郁症中医药研究进展

肠道微生物-肠-脑轴因其在调节精神疾病中的可能生物学基础作用而受到越来越多的关注。肠道微生物与抑郁症等精神疾病密切相关,肠道微生物可通过与"肠-脑轴"交互作用影响抑郁症的发生和发展,然而,肠道微生物与抑郁症之间的具体相互作用及机制还未十分明晰。深入研究微生物-肠-脑轴和抑郁症之间的相互关系,有助于我们从另一个角度更为深刻地认识和阐明抑郁症这种精神疾病。调节肠道微生物组成来治疗、预防抑郁症等精神疾病是今后的研究方向之一,可为探索中医药治疗、预防抑郁症机理提供新的思路。     

肠道微生物代谢物在肠易激综合征中的研究进展

肠易激综合征(irritable bowel syndrome, IBS)是常见的胃肠道功能障碍疾病,以腹痛、腹胀、排便习惯改变等为典型临床症状。尽管IBS病因复杂且发病机制并未完全阐明,但越来越多的文献报道其发病与微生物-肠-脑轴调控失常密切相关。本文以肠道微生物衍生的代谢物神经递质、短链脂肪酸和胆汁酸代谢物为切入点,对其在内脏敏感、腹痛、腹泻和精神心理障碍等IBS症状发展中的作用进行系统综述,为以代谢物转化细菌为靶点治疗IBS提供理论支撑。     

应激和肠道菌群在肠易激综合征内脏疼痛中的机制研究

内脏痛是一种躯体内脏器官引起的疼痛,是功能性胃肠病(FGIDs)如肠易激综合征(irritable bowel syndrome,IBS)最常见的临床症状。慢性应激被认为是IBS的发病病因之一,应激可调节脑一肠轴的结构和功能,同时激活肠道免疫,破坏肠道黏膜屏障以及引起内脏感觉过敏。近年来,肠道微生物与脑一肠轴的双向交流及相互作用逐渐被认识,本研究就应激与肠道菌群在IBS内脏疼痛的机制研究作一综述。     

肠道微生物和肠-脑轴在肥胖发展中的作用

肥胖和相关代谢综合征已成为全球最突出的健康问题之一,肠道微生物已被证明参与肥胖的发展,并可能对肥胖的发展和其干预治疗等提供重要的见解。最近的研究表明,肠道微生物和大脑的相互作用可能是肥胖的后果或解释因素,肠-脑轴是它们相互作用的联络枢纽。此外,肠道微生物可以通过肠道激素（包括ghrelin）以及迷走神经连接（影响能量消耗和CNS中与饮食行为相关的区域）来影响肠-脑轴,从而改变宿主行为。同时,肠道微生物代谢物和其产物还可以充当信号分子并调节肠内分泌细胞的激素分泌,如GLP1和PYY,从而调节食欲、肠道运动、能量吸收和储存以及能量消耗等摄食相关行为,进而影响肥胖的发展。所以,理解这些信号和激素作用并从药理学方法增强它们,可能为治疗肥胖提供一种重要的途径。     

肠道稳态与肠易激综合征

肠易激综合征(Irritable bowel syndrome,IBS)是一种常见的功能性胃肠病,其具体发病机制尚不清楚。近年来的研究显示肠道稳态的改变(主要表现为菌群失调)与IBS病理生理机制密切相关。流行病学研究表明IBS的发展往往会破坏肠道正常菌群的稳定状态,IBS患者组和健康对照组之间肠道菌群结构存在明显差异。此外,动物实验和一些临床研究表明IBS肠道菌群组成的变化与胃肠道和脑—肠轴功能异常密切相关,而这些也是IBS患者常表现出的临床症状。本研究综述了微生物群—脑—肠轴相互作用对IBS发生发展的影响,帮助深入对IBS的认识并指导临床。     

基于脑-肠轴理论探讨针灸治疗认知障碍的机制

认知障碍是一种主要影响认知能力（包括学习、记忆、感知和问题解决等）的心理健康障碍。认知障碍常见于阿尔茨海默病、血管性痴呆、轻度认知障碍等患者。与药物治疗相比，针灸治疗具有低成本、可耐受性和安全等特点，已成为改善认知功能的潜在工具。许多研究表明，在认知障碍的患者中，针灸治疗具有明显改善认知功能的作用。但针灸改善认知功能的机制仍不清楚。基于中医从肠治脑的理论基础以及目前实验研究，脑-肠轴与针灸改善大脑认知功能关系密切。对于针灸改善认知的脑-肠轴机制的理解能促进肠道微生物微观机制研究，但肠道微生物存在个体差异、动态变化、种类繁多等特征，以肠道稳态为调控目标的新针灸方案有待研究完善与规范。本文综述了针灸干预脑-肠轴治疗认知障碍，针灸通过维持肠道生态平衡、保持肠道菌群多样性、调整有益菌群丰度、调节代谢、促进生成脑源性神经营养因子（BDNF）、抑制小胶质细胞激活、降低神经炎症反应、减少Aβ蛋白沉积等机制，实现对认知障碍的治疗。     

微生物-肠-脑轴的研究进展

肠道微生物群能够调节宿主肠道稳态,同时参与调节宿主神经系统功能和行为。肠道菌群失调可能导致宿主神经系统功能障碍,从而引发神经退行性疾病。因此,研究微生物在肠?脑轴中发挥的作用及其机制,靶向调控肠道微生物菌群结构和功能,将为神经系统疾病的诊断与治疗提供新的手段。近年来,有关肠道微生物与机体神经系统间的互作研究受到了广泛关注,然而其具体的调控机制还未明晰。因此,本文综述了肠道微生物对宿主神经健康的调节作用,以及肠道微生物与宿主间的互作在调节神经功能、行为的潜力等研究进展,为更好地了解肠道微生物在调控宿主神经系统功能和行为的作用机制提供参考。     

神经精神疾病微生物组研究现状和展望

人类肠道微生物组是一个数量庞大的微生物群落,它们与宿主互为影响,被认为是维持机体健康和许多疾病致病机制的重要环节。越来越多的研究认为,肠道正常菌群对于中枢神经系统的发育和情感的调控至关重要。随着微生物与大脑相互作用研究的深入,"肠-脑轴"的概念也被进一步扩展为"微生物-肠-脑轴"。目前,主要的研究集中于探究肠道微生物在健康和致病中的具体机制,如应激相关的疾病抑郁症、焦虑症等,神经退行性疾病帕金森病、阿尔兹海默症等。肠道微生物组与中枢神经系统的双向调节主要通过调节单胺类神经递质、下丘脑垂体肾上腺激活、调节神经营养因子分泌、神经免疫激活等途径来实现。微生物-肠-脑轴失衡可影响行为表型,导致神经精神疾病,因此,通过调节肠道微生物组成来治疗神经精神疾病是今后的研究热点。对神经精神疾病肠道微生物组的研究现状进行了总结,为肠道微生物组对神经心理的调控寻找更多的证据,以便能更好地理解微生物-肠-脑轴的潜在机制。     

基于微生物-肠-脑轴的粪菌移植抗抑郁的研究和展望CSCD

抑郁症是一种常见的精神疾病,病程持久且反复难愈,极大地影响了患者的正常生活。目前临床常规一线抗抑郁药物的疗效并不理想,亟待研发新的治疗方法。已有研究表明抑郁症与肠道菌群密切相关,微生物-肠-脑轴功能障碍是抑郁症的主要病理基础,是直接诱发和影响抑郁症的关键因素。以肠道微生物群为导向的抗抑郁治疗是目前最有前景的研究方向之一。本文主要介绍了肠道菌群与抑郁症的关系,以及粪菌移植在临床前和临床阶段抗抑郁的效果。     

"肠道微生物-肠道-脑轴"机制--肠道微生物干预神经退行性病变研究进展

肠道微生物是人体中最为庞大和复杂的微生物群落,其对机体的健康,尤其是中枢神经退行性病变具有重要调节作用。其中,"肠道微生物-肠道-脑轴"机制是肠道微生物干预中枢神经退行性病变的重要途径。该机制主要通过以下三种方式来调节大脑功能:一是肠道微生物直接产生神经递质通过肠神经细胞上行至中枢神经系统;二是肠道微生物代谢产物刺激肠内分泌细胞产生神经肽类和胃肠激素类物质,影响大脑功能;三是肠道微生物或其代谢产物直接刺激肠道免疫系统,产生干扰素类物质干扰大脑免疫反应。本文对"肠道微生物-肠道-脑轴"机制的概念及研究进展进行了详细的介绍,同时总结了有关肠道微生物与阿尔兹海默症、帕金森症和多发性硬化症等神经退行性疾病相互作用的相关文献。依据"肠道微生物-肠道-脑轴"机制,利用肠道微生物预防和治疗神经退行性病变,或将成为解决中枢神经系统疾病的新措施。     

Chronic Functional Bowel Syndrome Enhances Gut-Brain Axis Dysfunction,Neuroinflammation, Cognitive Impairment,and Vulnerability to Dementia

The irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common chronic functional gastrointestinal disorder world wide that lasts for decades. The human gut harbors a diverse population of microbial organisms which is symbiotic and important for well being. However, studies on conventional, germ-free, and obese animals have shown that alteration in normal commensal gut microbiota and an increase in pathogenic microbiota—termed “dysbiosis”, impact gut function, homeostasis, and health. Diarrhea, constipation, visceral hypersensitivity, and abdominal pain arise in IBS from the gut-induced dysfunctional metabolic, immune, and neuro-immune communication. Dysbiosis in IBS is associated with gut inflammation. Gut-related inflammation is pivotal in promoting endotoxemia, systemic inflammation, and neuroinflammation. A significant proportion of IBS patients chronically consume alcohol, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, and fatty diet; they may also suffer from co-morbid respiratory, neuromuscular, psychological, sleep, and neurological disorders. The above pathophysiological substrate is underpinned by dysbiosis, and dysfunctional bidirectional “Gut-Brain Axis” pathways. Pathogenic gut microbiota-related systemic inflammation (due to increased lipopolysaccharide and pro-inflammatory cytokines, and barrier dysfunction), may trigger neuroinflammation enhancing dysfunctional brain regions including hippocampus and cerebellum. These as well as dysfunctional vago-vagal gut-brain axis may promote cognitive impairment. Indeed, inflammation is characteristic of a broad spectrum of neurodegenerative diseases that manifest demntia. It is argued that an awareness of pathophysiological impact of IBS and implementation of appropriate therapeutic measures may prevent cognitive impairment and minimize vulnerability to dementia.     

肠道菌群与肠易激综合征相关研究进展

肠易激综合征(irritable bowel syndrome,IBS)是一种功能性肠病,目前已有研究表明IBS的致病机制、症状的产生和持续时间可能与肠道菌群失调有关,且不同IBS亚型患者体内的肠道菌群种类有差异。IBS的发病机制尚不完全清楚,临床表现存在较大的个体差异。IBS的诊断和治疗尚未形成统一的标准。但已经有较多研究提示IBS可能与胃肠道动力、内脏高敏感性、肠道免疫反应和模式识别受体等密切相关,并且可以通过益生菌、益生元、抗生素、粪菌移植和饮食习惯等调节肠道菌群的失调,从而改善IBS的症状。这也为未来治疗IBS提供了新的思路。本文就肠道菌群的概况、IBS患者肠道菌群的特点、肠道菌群失衡导致IBS发病的可能机制以及IBS肠道菌群的相关治疗方法的研究进展作一综述。     

Relationship between Vagal Tone,Cortisol, TNF-Alpha,Epinephrine and Negative Affects in Crohn’s Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Crohn’s disease (CD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) involve brain-gut dysfunctions where vagus nerve is an important component. The aim of this work was to study the association between vagal tone and markers of stress and inflammation in patients with CD or IBS compared to healthy subjects (controls). The study was performed in 73 subjects (26 controls, 21 CD in remission and 26 IBS patients). The day prior to the experiment, salivary cortisol was measured at 8∶00 AM and 10∶00 PM. The day of the experiment, subjects completed questionnaires for anxiety (STAI) and depressive symptoms (CES-D). After 30 min of rest, ECG was recorded for heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. Plasma cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, TNF-alpha and IL-6 were measured in blood samples taken at the end of ECG recording. Compared with controls, CD and IBS patients had higher scores of state-anxiety and depressive symptomatology. A subgroup classification based on HRV-normalized high frequency band (HFnu) as a marker of vagal tone, showed that control subjects with high vagal tone had significantly lower evening salivary cortisol levels than subjects with low vagal tone. Such an effect was not observed in CD and IBS patients. Moreover, an inverse association (r = −0.48; p<0.05) was observed between the vagal tone and TNF-alpha level in CD patients exclusively. In contrast, in IBS patients, vagal tone was inversely correlated with plasma epinephrine (r = −0.39; p<0.05). No relationship was observed between vagal tone and IL-6, norepinephrine or negative affects (anxiety and depressive symptomatology) in any group. In conclusion, these data argue for an imbalance between the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis and the vagal tone in CD and IBS patients. Furthermore, they highlight the specific homeostatic link between vagal tone and TNF-alpha in CD and epinephrine in IBS and argue for the relevance of vagus nerve reinforcement interventions in those diseases.     

V. Stress and irritable bowel syndrome

Different types of stress play important roles in the onset and modulation of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms. The physiological effects of psychological and physical stressors on gut function and brain-gut interactions are mediated by outputs of the emotional motor system in terms of autonomic, neuroendocrine, attentional, and pain modulatory responses. IBS patients show an enhanced responsiveness of this system manifesting in altered modulation of gastrointestinal motility and secretion and in alterations in the perception of visceral events. Functional brain imaging techniques are beginning to identify brain circuits involved in the perceptual alterations. Animal models have recently been proposed that mimic key features of the human syndrome.     

Effects of neonatal maternal separation on neurochemical and sensory response to colonic distension in a rat model of irritable bowel syndrome

Early life stress has been implicated as a risk factor for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). We studied the effect of neonatal maternal separation on the visceromotor response and the expression of c-fos, 5-HT, and its receptors/transporters along the brain-gut axis in an animal model of IBS. Male neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to a 3-h daily maternal separation (MS) or nonhandling (NH) on postnatal days 2-21. Colorectal balloon distention (CRD) was performed for assessment of abdominal withdrawal reflex as a surrogate marker of visceral pain. Tissues from dorsal raphe nucleus in midbrain, lumbar-sacral cord, and distal colon were harvested for semiquantitative analysis of c-fos and 5-HT. The expression of 5-HT expression, 5-HT3 receptors, and 5-HT transporter were analyzed by RT-PCR. Pain threshold was significantly lower in MS than NH rats. The abdominal withdrawal reflex score in response to CRD in MS rats was significantly higher with distension pressures of 40, 60, and 80 mmHg. In MS rats, the number of c-fos-like immunoreactive nuclei at dorsal horn of lumbar-sacral spinal cord increased significantly after CRD. 5-HT content in the spinal cord of MS rats was significant higher. In the colon, both 5-HT-positive cell number and 5-HT content were comparable between MS and NH groups before CRD. Post-CRD only MS rats had significant increase in 5-HT content. Protein and mRNA expression levels of 5-HT3 receptors and 5-HT transporter were similar in MS and NH rats. Neonatal maternal separation stress predisposes rats to exaggerated neurochemical responses and visceral hyperalgesia in colon mimicking IBS.     

Focus: Microbiome: Gut Microbiome and Infant Health: Brain-Gut-Microbiota Axis and Host Genetic Factors

The development of the neonatal gut microbiome is influenced by multiple factors, such as delivery mode, feeding, medication use, hospital environment, early life stress, and genetics. The dysbiosis of gut microbiota persists during infancy, especially in high-risk preterm infants who experience lengthy stays in the Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Infant microbiome evolutionary trajectory is essentially parallel with the host (infant) neurodevelopmental process and growth. The role of the gut microbiome, the brain-gut signaling system, and its interaction with the host genetics have been shown to be related to both short and long term infant health and bio-behavioral development. The investigation of potential dysbiosis patterns in early childhood is still lacking and few studies have addressed this host-microbiome co-developmental process. Further research spanning a variety of fields of study is needed to focus on the mechanisms of brain-gut-microbiota signaling system and the dynamic host-microbial interaction in the regulation of health, stress and development in human newborns.     

The effects of physical and psychological stress on the gastro-intestinal tract: lessons from animal models

Physical and psychological stresses are widely accepted as triggers and / or modifiers of the clinical course of diverse gastrointestinal disorders such as peptic ulcer, irritable bowel syndrome or inflammatory bowel disease. Growing experimental evidence from a variety of models such as immobilization, thermal injury or early maternal deprivation in laboratory animals uniformly supports the ability of stress to induce the development of gastric ulcers, altered gastrointestinal motility and ion secretion, and increased intestinal permeability leading to the passage of antigens to the lamina propria and bacterial translocation. Stress can also synergize with other pathogenic factors such as Helicobacter pylori, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or colitis-inducing chemicals to produce gastrointestinal disease. The brain-gut axis provides the anatomical basis through emotions and environmental influences modulate the gastrointestinal function through the regulation of gastrointestinal immune system and mucosal inflammation; in this sense, mucosal mast cells - at cellular level - and corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) - at molecular level - seem to play a crucial role. On the other hand, an array of adaptive responses have been evolved in order to maintain the homeostasis and to ensure the survival of the individual. In the gut mucosa anti-inflammatory pathways counteract the deleterious effect of the stressful stimuli on the gastrointestinal homeostasis. In the present review we discuss the several experimental approaches used to mimic human stressful events or chronic stress in laboratory animals, the evidence of stress-induced gastrointestinal inflammation and dysfunction derived from them, and the involved cellular and molecular mechanisms that are being discovered during the last years.     

A survey of web resources and tools for the study of TCM network pharmacology

Background: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treats diseases in a holistic manner, while TCM formulae are multi-component, multi-target agents at the molecular level. Thus there are many parallels between the key ideas of TCM pharmacology and network pharmacology. These years, TCM network pharmacology has developed as an interdisciplinary of TCM science and network pharmacology, which studies the mechanism of TCM at the molecular level and in the context of biological networks. It provides a new research paradigm that can use modern biomedical science to interpret the mechanism of TCM, which is promising to accelerate the modernization and internationalization of TCM. Results: In this paper we introduce state-of-the-art free data sources, web servers and softwares that can be used in the TCM network pharmacology, including databases of TCM, drug targets and diseases, web servers for the prediction of drug targets, and tools for network and functional analysis. Conclusions: This review could help experimental pharmacologists make better use of the existing data and methods in their study of TCM.     

Irritable bowel syndrome: a review on the role of intestinal protozoa and the importance of their detection and diagnosis

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder in which abdominal pain is associated with a defect or a change in bowel habits. Gut inflammation is one of the proposed mechanisms of pathogenesis. Recent studies have described a possible role for protozoan parasites, such as Blastocystis hominis and Dientamoeba fragilis, in the etiology of IBS. Dientamoeba fragilis is known to cause IBS-like symptoms and has a propensity to cause chronic infections but its diagnosis relies on microscopy of stained smears, which many laboratories do not perform, thereby leading to the misdiagnosis of dientamoebiasis as IBS. The role of B. hominis as an etiological agent of IBS is inconclusive, due to contradictory reports and the controversial nature of B. hominis as a human pathogen. Although Entamoeba histolytica infections occur predominately in developing regions of the world, clinical diagnosis of amebiasis is often difficult because symptoms of patients with IBS may closely mimic those patients with non-dysenteric amoebic colitis. Clinical manifestations of Giardia intestinalis infection also vary from asymptomatic carriage to acute and chronic diarrhoea with abdominal pain. These IBS-like symptoms can be continuous, intermittent, sporadic or recurrent, sometimes lasting years without correct diagnosis. It is essential that all patients with IBS undergo routine parasitological investigations in order to rule out the presence of protozoan parasites as the causative agents of the clinical signs.