Scientists Develop Psychobiotics for Mental Health as 100 Trillion Gut Microbes Draw Scrutiny
Updated
Updated · New Scientist · Jul 23
Scientists Develop Psychobiotics for Mental Health as 100 Trillion Gut Microbes Draw Scrutiny
3 articles · Updated · New Scientist · Jul 23
Summary
Researchers are shifting from observing gut-brain links to testing psychobiotics—probiotics, prebiotics and postbiotics—as potential treatments for depression, anxiety and other psychiatric conditions.
100 trillion microbial cells in the digestive tract may influence the brain through the vagus nerve, blood-borne metabolites, hormones and immune signaling, giving scientists several plausible pathways to target.
Oxford-led work found a probiotic changed cognitive and emotional processing, while a 2023 JAMA Psychiatry study tested probiotics in major depression and IBS trials showed heat-treated bacteria can mirror live strains.
500 million neurons in the enteric nervous system help explain the two-way gut-brain relationship, but most trials remain small and researchers say larger, longer studies are still needed before psychobiotics become routine care.