Anatomy and Neuroscience - Journal Articles

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Focus on the essentials: tryptophan metabolism and the microbiome-gut-brain axis
(Elsevier Ltd., 2019-10-14) Gheorghe, Cassandra Elise; Martin, Jason A.; Villalobos Manriquez, Francisca; Dinan, Timothy G.; Cryan, John F.; Clarke, Gerard; Science Foundation Ireland; Health Research Board; Air Force Office of Scientific Research
The gut-brain axis is a bidirectional communication system between the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract, in which serotonin (5-HT) functions as a key neurotransmitter. Recent research has increasingly concentrated on tryptophan, the precursor to 5-HT and on the microbial regulation of tryptophan metabolism, with an emphasis on host-microbe control over kynurenine pathway metabolism and microbial-specific pathways that generate bioactive tryptophan metabolites. Here, we critically assess recent progress made towards a mechanistic understanding of the microbial regulation of tryptophan metabolism and microbiota-gut-brain axis homeostasis highlighting the role tryptophan metabolism plays in preclinical and clinical neuroscience and in the challenge to improve our understanding of how perturbed tryptophan metabolism contributes to stress-related psychiatric disorders.