Feeling low? How is your gut health? Bacteria may trigger depression, study says
Intestinal bacteria that set off an autoimmune inflammatory response could be the reason you are feeling down, researchers find
A team of US-based scientists have found “a probable causal connection” between a form of bacteria found in the human gut and the onset of depression.
Carried out by a team from Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital, the research points to “underlying molecular mechanisms” between the intestinal bacteria Morganella morganii and major depressive disorder.
The findings, published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, followed the publication in recent years of research that found compelling links between the two. But until now, no one could tell whether the bacteria helps drive the disorder, if the disorder alters the gut microbiome or if something else is at play.
The researchers discovered that the chemical diethanolamine, or DEA, an ingredient in some detergents, sometimes takes the place of a sugar alcohol in a molecule that bacteria make in the gut. It in turn sets off an immune response that leads to the release of inflammatory proteins called cytokines.
