Exploring the relationship between the gut microbiome and mental health outcomes in a posttraumatic stress disorder cohort relative to trauma-exposed controls.
Journal: European neuropsychopharmacology : the journal of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology
Volume: 56
Issue:
Year of Publication: 2022
Affiliated Institutions:
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg, South Africa. Electronic address: smalanmul@gmail.com.
Department of Cellular, Computational and Integrative Biology, University of Trento, Trento, Italy.
Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States; Center for Microbial Exploration, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States. Electronic address: Christine.Foxx@Colorado.edu.
Laboratory of Molecular Bacteriology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Rega Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Electronic address: sara.vieirasilva@kuleuven.be.
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg, South Africa; South African Medical Research Council, Stellenbosch University Genomics of Brain Disorders Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa. Electronic address: llvdh@sun.ac.za.
Laboratory of Molecular Bacteriology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Rega Institute, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Electronic address: jeroen.raes@kuleuven.be.
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg, South Africa; South African Medical Research Council, Stellenbosch University Genomics of Brain Disorders Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa; South African Research Chair in PTSD, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa. Electronic address: sseedat@sun.ac.za.
Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States; Center for Microbial Exploration, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States. Electronic address: Christopher.Lowry@colorado.edu.
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg, South Africa; South African Medical Research Council, Stellenbosch University Genomics of Brain Disorders Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa; South African Research Chair in PTSD, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa. Electronic address: smjh@sun.ac.za.
Abstract summary
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) imposes a significant burden on patients and communities. Although the microbiome-gut-brain axis has been proposed as a mediator or moderator of PTSD risk and persistence of symptoms, clinical data directly delineating the gut microbiome's relationship to PTSD are sparse. This study investigated associations between the gut microbiome and mental health outcomes in participants with PTSD (n = 79) and trauma-exposed controls (TECs) (n = 58). Diagnoses of PTSD, major depressive disorder (MDD), and childhood trauma were made using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 (CAPS-5), MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), respectively. Microbial communities from stool samples were profiled using 16S ribosomal RNA gene V4 amplicon sequencing and tested for associations with PTSD-related variables of interest. Random forest models identified a consortium of four genera, i.e., a combination of Mitsuokella, Odoribacter, Catenibacterium, and Olsenella, previously associated with periodontal disease, that could distinguish PTSD status with 66.4% accuracy. The relative abundance of this consortium was higher in the PTSD group and correlated positively with CAPS-5 and CTQ scores. MDD diagnosis was also associated with increased relative abundance of the Bacteroidetes phylum. Current use of psychotropics significantly impacted community composition and the relative abundances of several taxa. Early life trauma may prime the microbiome for changes in composition that facilitate a pro-inflammatory cascade and increase the risk of development of PTSD. Future studies should rigorously stratify participants into healthy controls, TECs, and PTSD (stratified by psychotropic drug use) to explore the role of the oral-gut-microbiome-brain axis in trauma-related disorders.
Authors & Co-authors:
Malan-Muller Stefanie S
Valles-Colomer Mireia M
Foxx Christine L CL
Vieira-Silva Sara S
van den Heuvel Leigh L LL
Raes Jeroen J
Seedat Soraya S
Lowry Christopher A CA
Hemmings Sian M J SMJ
Study Outcome
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