Accumulating evidence suggests that the microbiota plays a key role in the brain and
behavior (
1
,
2
,
3
,
4
). Alterations in the gut microbiota-brain axis have been implicated in stress-related
disorders such as depression and anxiety, in neurodevelopmental disorders such as
autism, and in cognitive functioning (
1
,
4
,
5
,
6
). Neurogenesis, the birth of new neurons, in the adult hippocampus is thought to
play an important role in learning and memory and responses to stress and antidepressant
drugs (
7
,
8
,
9
). Germ-free (GF) mice have grown up without having ever been exposed to microorganisms
and are an excellent tool to probe the role of the microbiota in health and disease.
Several studies have suggested that some brain processes that are regulated by adult
hippocampal neurogenesis are also affected in GF mice (
6
,
10
), and altered concentrations of substrates known to influence adult hippocampal neurogenesis,
such as corticosterone, serotonin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and proinflammatory
cytokines, have been reported in these mice (
2
,
11
). However, whether adult hippocampal neurogenesis is altered in GF mice has not yet
been reported.To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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References
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- The microbiome-gut-brain axis during early life regulates the hippocampal serotonergic system in a sex-dependent manner.Mol Psychiatry. 2013; 18: 666-673
- GABAB(1) receptor subunit isoforms differentially regulate stress resilience.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014; 111: 15232-15237
- Lithium-induced effects on adult hippocampal neurogenesis are topographically segregated along the dorso-ventral axis of stressed mice.Neuropharmacology. 2012; 62: 247-255
- A ventral view on antidepressant action: Roles for adult hippocampal neurogenesis along the dorsoventral axis.Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2014; 35: 675-687
- Neurogenesis along the septo-temporal axis of the hippocampus: Are depression and the action of antidepressants region-specific?.Neuroscience. 2013; 252: 234-252
- The Mouse Brain in Stereotaxic Coordinates. 2nd ed. Academic Press, San Francisco2001
Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 17, 2015
Footnotes
Authors JFC and OFO contributed equally to this work.
Identification
Copyright
© 2015 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
