Associations between self-reported psychological symptom severity and gut microbiota: further support for the microgenderome

Abstract

Background Research into the brain-gut-microbiota axis (BGMA) continues to reveal associations between gut microbiota (GM) and psychological symptom expression, inspiring new ways of conceptualising psychological disorders. However, before GM modulation can be touted as a possible auxiliary treatment option, more research is needed as inconsistencies in previous findings regarding these associations are prevalent. Additionally, the concept of the microgenderome, which proposes that GM may interact with sex hormones, has received limited attention in studies using human samples to date. However, such research has demonstrated sex specific associations between GM and psychological symptom expression. Method This cross-sectional retrospective study explores associations between GM species (identified through faecal microbial analysis) and symptom severity across four psychological domains (Depressive, Neurocognitive, Stress and Anxiety, and Sleep and Fatigue) for males (N = 1143) and females (N = 3467) separately. Results GM species from several genera including Bifidobacterium, Clostridium, Enterococcus, and Leuconostoc were found to be differentially associated with psychological symptom severity for males and females. As such, the findings of the current study provide support for the concept of the microgenderome. Conclusion While further research is needed before their implementation in psychological treatment plans, the current findings suggest that modulation of GM at the species level may hold promise as auxiliary diagnostic or treatment options. These findings may give further insight into a client’s presenting problem from a more holistic, multidisciplinary perspective. The clear sex divergence in associations between GM and symptoms give insight into sex discrepancies in susceptibility to psychological disorders.

Effect of Probiotic Yogurt Supplementation(Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis BB-12) on Gut Microbiota of Female Taekwondo Athletes and Its Relationship with Exercise-Related Psychological Fatigue

“…Women tend to exhibit higher levels compared to men [ 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ]. Bifidobacterium and Clostridium , which are closely associated with these psychological and cognitive disorders, may be potential therapeutic targets, especially in the female population [ 43 ]. In addition, the genus Clostridium is associated with various metabolic pathways, including arginine metabolism, proline metabolism, and fatty acid biosynthesis, and is linked to a broad network of functional connections that mediate the relationship between Clostridium -associated metabolic pathways and cognition.…”

“…The results revealed that the abundance of g_ Bifidobacterium , f_ Lactobacillaceae , and g_ Lactobacillus in the DK group was significantly higher than that in the CK group. As previously mentioned, g_ Bifidobacterium is closely related to depression, neurocognition, stress, and anxiety, and may serve as a potential target for the treatment of psychological and cognitive disorders [ 43 ]. g_ Lactobacillaceae (at the family or genus level) is also closely related to emotions and cognition.…”

Diet quality and anxiety: a critical overview with focus on the gut microbiome

“…Furthermore, it could aid the development of personalized nutritional therapies by identifying next generation probiotics species to be tested in anxiety treatment – analogously to what is currently being done for major depressive disorder (Zorzan and Barberis, personal communication) – and by taking into account sex-based variations. Indeed, sex-specific associations also occur between gut microbiome and anxiety severity at the species level as pinpointed in a study by Ganci et al ( 16 ): in males, Alistipes shahii was negatively associated with anxiety; in females (males), Lactobacillus paracasei ( Lactobacillus plantarum ) and Streptococcus dysgalactiae ( Streptococcus gallolyticus ) were positively associated with anxiety. Jiang et al ( 17 ) also observed that probiotics supplementation differentially alleviates anxiety-like behaviors in male and female animal models.…”

“…The authors also showed lower relative abundance of Prevotella (Bacteroidetes phylum) in anxious female participants. Likewise, Ganci et al ( 16 ) identified sex-specific relationships in females, noting both positive and negative associations between anxiety symptoms and specific Firmicutes species, including negative associations with Clostridium innocuum, Enterococcus durans, Leuconostoc lactis, Ruminococcus gnavus and positive associations with Lactobacillus paracasei , and Streptococcus dysgalactiae . In a study investigating positive and negative affect, Lee et al ( 35 ) found that Collinsella (Actinobacteria phylum) was inversely associated with positive affect, whereas a new genus from the Lachnospiraceae family (PAC001043) showed a positive association with positive affect and a negative association with negative affect.…”

“…Conversely, Kleiman et al ( 170 ) found no significant associations between anxiety and either microbiome composition or diversity in healthy females. It is important to highlight that Kleiman et al ( 170 ) included participants displaying “normal” or “minimal levels of anxiety and psychiatric measures” thereby excluding individuals with subclinical levels of anxiety who were included in the study by Ganci et al ( 16 ) and Kim et al ( 169 ). Conflicting results may be due to a non-linear relationship between microbiome and anxiety across different levels of anxiety severity.…”