{"id":3659,"date":"2022-06-02T12:34:07","date_gmt":"2022-06-02T16:34:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/?p=3659"},"modified":"2022-07-29T11:33:14","modified_gmt":"2022-07-29T15:33:14","slug":"parkinsons-autism-spectrum-disorder-and-the-gut-brain-axis-a-role-for-psychobiotics-in-ameliorating-neurological-symptoms-from-the-gut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/parkinsons-autism-spectrum-disorder-and-the-gut-brain-axis-a-role-for-psychobiotics-in-ameliorating-neurological-symptoms-from-the-gut\/","title":{"rendered":"Parkinson\u2019s, autism spectrum disorder, and the gut-brain axis: A role for psychobiotics in ameliorating neurological symptoms from the gut"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The need is acute for more safe and effective ways to help patients live more comfortably with chronic neurological conditions like Parkinson\u2019s disease (PD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).&nbsp;Despite receiving modern evidence-based medical treatment, many patients experience frequently distressing symptoms.<br>&nbsp;<br>Recent clinical research in PD and ASD patients suggests certain probiotic strains, known as psychobiotics, can attenuate neurological symptoms. While probiotics like those found on grocery store shelves and dairy cases are typically associated with improving digestion, psychobiotics exert an influence on the brain via the gut-brain axis. They offer a novel and low-risk option for PD and ASD patients to explore in conjunction with more traditional therapies.<br>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3812572458252831\"\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\"\n     data-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3812572458252831\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"7669348015\"><\/ins>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How can the gut microbiota communicate with the brain?<\/strong><br>\u00a0<br>Knowledge of the gut-brain axis (GBA) has grown exponentially in recent years, from relatively little information a decade ago, to more than 1200 scientific papers published on the topic in 2021 alone. The GBA includes all of the pathways that connect the central nervous system (CNS) and the gastrointestinal (GI) tract: the vagus nerve as well as bloodborne immune factors, hormones such as dopamine and serotonin, and microbial metabolites.<br>\u00a0<br>This GBA connection allows the brain and gut to influence one another in surprisingly intimate ways. The gut microbiota \u2013 all the\u00a0microorganisms\u00a0living in the gut, including bacteria, fungi, yeasts and viruses \u2013 influences brain development and function, including cognition and mental health. Meanwhile, the CNS affects the composition and function of gut microbiota not only by controlling gut motility and permeability, but also via hormone levels that can directly influence microbial gene expression.<br>\u00a0<br>The existence of the GBA provides an explanation for the high incidence of GI symptoms in neurological disease patients and vice versa. It also provides a potential way to directly influence neurological symptoms by introducing specific probiotic strains into the gut microbiota.<br>\u00a0<br><strong>Taking advantage of the GBA to help PD and ASD patients<\/strong><br>\u00a0<br>Psychobiotics are probiotic strains that are neurologically active. Animal studies show that oral administration of psychobiotics can help regulate neurotransmitters and gut-produced hormones, changing their levels in the bloodstream and brain tissue via the GBA. Such molecules play vital roles in controlling mood, movement, learning, memory processes, and cognitive function.<br>\u00a0<br>Certain psychobiotic strains like\u00a0Lactobacillus plantarum\u00a0PS128 (PS128) modulate serotonin and dopamine levels in animals, and abnormal levels of these hormones are seen in PD and ASD. This immediately raises the question of whether psychobiotics might show a benefit in these patients.<br>\u00a0<br>Initial clinical results are promising. A\u00a0recent pilot study\u00a0in patients with PD found that\u00a0Lactobacillus plantarum\u00a0PS128, alongside conventional treatment, improved motor function and quality of life. In children and adolescents with ASD, multiple published and ongoing trials show that\u00a0PS128\u00a0can significantly improve anxiety levels, shared attention, and communication skills. Interestingly, benefits have been observed regardless of whether the children had GI symptoms, suggesting PS128 can positively affect the gut-brain axis directly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3812572458252831\"\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\"\n     data-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3812572458252831\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"7669348015\"><\/ins>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script>\n\n\n\n<p><br>\u00a0<br><strong>The future of psychobiotics and neurological illness<\/strong><br>\u00a0<br>The use of psychobiotics by people with neurological illnesses like PD and ASD is potentially attractive from several angles. First, the illnesses themselves often present with significant GI tract symptoms. In the case of PD there are also suggestions that IBD or gut dysbiosis may play a role in disease onset for some\u00a0patients. This highlights the connection between the CNS and the gut, a connection that psychobiotics are uniquely poised to exploit. Other neurological conditions like anxiety, depression, headache, and sleep difficulties are also commonly found among those with GI diseases (refr).<br>\u00a0<br>In addition, specific psychobiotics such as\u00a0Lactobacillus plantarum\u00a0PS128 are known to regulate levels of the hormones dopamine and serotonin, hormones which are depleted in PD and ASD patients, respectively. Other psychobiotics may affect the CNS in ways that make them useful for addressing a different spectrum of mind, mood and\/or movement symptoms. Lastly, probiotics are well recognized for being safe for long-term use with few or no reported side-effects, unlike many drugs for chronic conditions such as PD and ASD.<br>\u00a0<br>Neurologically active probiotics offer an exciting pathway for research in the field of mental health. We look forward to the future research that will be required to gauge their mechanism and efficacy for multiple psychiatric disorders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/labs\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4367209<br>https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/labs\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4367209\/#ref4<br>https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/labs\/pmc\/articles\/PMC4367209\/#ref4<br>https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/labs\/pmc\/articles\/PMC6047317\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The need is acute for more safe and effective ways to help patients live more comfortably with chronic neurological conditions like Parkinson\u2019s disease (PD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).&nbsp;Despite receiving modern evidence-based medical treatment, many patients experience frequently distressing symptoms.&nbsp;Recent clinical research in PD and ASD patients suggests certain probiotic strains, known as psychobiotics, can [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":3660,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3659","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-insights"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3659","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3659"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3659\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifescivoice.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}