Colonization with the commensal fungus Candida albicans perturbs the gut-brain axis through dysregulation of endocannabinoid signaling.

ABSTRACT: Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent mental health disorder worldwide, with a lifetime prevalence of 5-7 % of the human population. Although the etiology of anxiety disorders is incompletely understood, one aspect of host health that affects anxiety disorders is the gut-brain axis. Adolescence is a key developmental window in which stress and anxiety disorders are a major health concern. We used adolescent female mice in a gastrointestinal (GI) colonization model to demonstrate that the commensal fungus Candida albicans affects host health via the gut-brain axis. In mice, bacterial members of the gut microbiota can influence the host gut-brain axis, affecting anxiety-like behavior and the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis which produces the stress hormone corticosterone (CORT).

SUBMITTER: Markey L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7572798 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature