Abstract
Honoured as the second genome in humans, the gut microbiota is involved in a constellation of physiological and pathological processes, including those related to the central nervous system. The communication between the gut microbiota and the brain is realized by a complex bidirectional connection, known as the "microbiota-gut-brain axis", via neuroendocrine, immunological, and direct neural mechanisms. Recent studies indicate that gut dysfunction/dysbiosis is presumably involved in the pathogenesis of and susceptibility to epilepsy. In addition, the reconstruction of the intestinal microbiome through, for example, faecal microbiota transplantation, probiotic intervention, and a ketogenic diet, has exhibited beneficial effects on drug-resistant epilepsy. The purposes of this review are to provide a brief overview of the microbiota–gut–brain axis and to synthesize what is known about the involvement of the gut microbiota in the pathogenesis and treatment of epilepsy, to bring new insight into the pathophysiology of epilepsy and to present a preliminary discussion of novel therapeutic options for epilepsy based on the gut microbiota.
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This work was supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, China (81601140 and 81501130) and Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province, China (2020JJ5843).
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This work was supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, China (81601140 and 81501130) and Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province, China (2020JJ5843).
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. QY, QZ and CZ had the idea for the article. QY and MC performed the literature search and manuscript outline. The first draft of the manuscript was written by QY. BX, QZ, and CZ revised this work and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
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Yue, Q., Cai, M., Xiao, B. et al. The Microbiota–Gut–Brain Axis and Epilepsy. Cell Mol Neurobiol 42, 439–453 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-021-01130-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-021-01130-2