ArticleAdvanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)2026
Gut Bacteria Improve Depressive Symptoms by Degrading Cortisol into Androgen.
Article in Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Alterations in Gut Microbiota and Serum Metabolome Are Associated with Postpartum Depression.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Gut microbiota analysis of adrenal injury induced by chronic intermittent hypoxia in mice.BMC microbiology · 2026Article
- Diet, gut microbiota, and the gut-brain axis: mechanistic interactions and therapeutic implications in neuropsychiatric disorders.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Gut microbiota may play a role in regulating the stress hormone cortisol. However, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of cortisol by gut microbiota are poorly understood. Here, it is found that gut microbiota degraded cortisol, and this ability is heterogeneous among individuals. Mice gavaged with gut microbiota having a low ability to degrade cortisol may be prone to developing depressive-like behavior. The cortisol-degrading strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa Tongji is isolated from faecal microbiota. The des-like enzyme expressed by P. aeruginosa Tongji converts cortisol into androgen. Bacterial des-like enzyme protects mice against depressive-like behavior via degrading cortisol and producing androgen. The probiotic Bacillus subtilis expressing the des-like enzyme is constructed, which protects the host against cortisol elevation. These findings suggest that bacterial des-like enzyme may regulate cortisol and improve depression by converting cortisol into androgen.
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What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.