Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41852385›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in microbiomes2025

The gut-brain connection: microbes' influence on mental health and psychological disorders.

Pegah Ataei, Hamidreza Kalantari, Tamara S Bodnar, Raymond J Turner

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in microbiomes, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Pegah Ataei *Department of Clinical Psychology, Islamic Azad University, East, Azarbaijan, Iran.
Hamidreza Kalantari *Department of Microbiology, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Tamara S BodnarMicrobial Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Raymond J TurnerMicrobial Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The human gut microbiome has emerged as a pivotal modulator of brain function and mental health, acting through intricate bidirectional communication along the gut-brain axis. Mounting evidence suggests that microbial communities influence neurodevelopment, neurotransmission, and behavior via pathways involving the vagus nerve, immune signaling, and microbiota-derived metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids and neurotransmitter precursors. This review critically examines the mechanistic underpinnings of microbiota-brain communication and evaluates current findings linking dysbiosis to psychiatric conditions, including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorder, and bipolar disorder. In addition, it assesses the therapeutic potential of microbiome-targeted interventions-such as probiotics, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), and precision dietary modulation-in ameliorating neuropsychiatric symptoms. While the field holds considerable promise, limitations, including correlational study designs, small sample sizes, and a lack of standardized methodologies, underscore the need for rigorous, large-scale clinical trials. A deeper understanding of host-microbe interactions may catalyze a paradigm shift in psychiatric treatment, paving the way for novel, personalized microbiome-based therapeutics.

Indexed as

gut–brain axismental healthmicrobiomemicrobiome nexusneurotransmitters and microbiotapsychological disorders

Identifiers

PMID41852385
PMCPMC12993674

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.