Observational studyThe international journal of neuropsychopharmacology2021
Effects of Psychotropics on the Microbiome in Patients With Depression and Anxiety: Considerations in a Naturalistic Clinical Setting.
Observational study in The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 33 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
33 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 63 citations in OpenAlex.
- Changes in the Firmicutes to Bacteriodetes ratio in the gut microbiome in individuals with anorexia nervosa following inpatient treatment: A systematic review and a case series.Brain and behavior · 2024Pooled it
- The current state of research for psychobiotics use in the management of psychiatric disorders-A systematic literature review.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- The effect of SSRI/SNRI antidepressant treatment on the gut microbiota of patients with major depressive disorder.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- A Chrono-Metabolic Approach to Mental Health: Current Perspectives on Circadian Rhythms, Gut Microbiota, and Microbial Metabolites in Mood Disorders.Metabolites · 2026Review
- Mapping the reciprocal interactions between antidepressants and the gut microbiome: novel targets for the personalisation and optimization of drug response.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Review
- Mental health and gut-brain crosstalk: implications for depression and Alzheimer's disease.Neuroscience applied · 2026Review
- Microbiome and metabolic disruption in acute vs. severe and enduring anorexia nervosa.NPJ biofilms and microbiomes · 2025Article
- Gut Microbiota in Psychiatric and Neurological Disorders: Current Insights and Therapeutic Implications.Biomedicines · 2025Review
- Restoring Balance: Probiotic Modulation of Microbiota, Metabolism, and Inflammation in SSRI-Induced Dysbiosis Using the SHIMEPharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Integrating gut microbiome and neuroplasticity genomics in alcohol use disorder therapy.Human genomics · 2025Observational
- Medication use is associated with distinct microbial features in anxiety and depression.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Article
- Escitalopram alters tryptophan metabolism, plasma lipopolysaccharide, and the inferred functional potential of the gut microbiome in deer mice showing compulsive-like rigidity.Acta neuropsychiatrica · 2025Article
- Neuroinflammation-A Crucial Factor in the Pathophysiology of Depression-A Comprehensive Review.Biomolecules · 2025Review
- Altered oral health and microbiota in drug-free patients with schizophrenia.BMC psychiatry · 2025Observational
- Trajectories of pharmacological therapies for treatment-resistant depression: a longitudinal study.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Evaluating the Efficacy of Secondary Metabolites in Antibiotic-Induced Dysbiosis: A Narrative Review of Preclinical Studies.Antibiotics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- The Gut Microbiota-anxiety Connection: Evidence, Mechanisms, and Therapeutic Strategies.Current medicinal chemistry · 2025Review
- The bidirectional interaction between antidepressants and the gut microbiota: are there implications for treatment response?International clinical psychopharmacology · 2025Review
- Article
- Medication Use is Associated with Distinct Microbial Features in Anxiety and Depression.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe antibacterial effects of psychotropics may be part of their pharmacological effects when treating depression. However, limited studies have focused on gut microbiota in relation to prescribed medication.
methodWe longitudinally investigated the relationship between patients' prescribed medications and intestinal bacterial diversity in a naturalistic treatment course for patients with major depressive disorders and anxiety disorders. Patients were recruited and their stool was collected at 3 time points during their usual psychiatric treatments. Gut microbiota were analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. We examined the impact of psychotropics (i.e., antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics) on their gut microbial diversity and functions.
resultsWe collected 246 stool samples from 40 patients. Despite no differences in microbial diversity between medication groups at the baseline, over the course of treatment, phylogenic diversity whole-tree diversity decreased in patients on antipsychotics compared with patients without (P = .027), and beta diversity followed this trend. Based on a fixed-effect model, antipsychotics predicted microbial diversity; the higher doses correlated with less diversity based on the Shannon index and phylogenic diversity whole tree (estimate = -0.00254, SE = 0.000595, P < .0001; estimate = -0.02644, SE = 0.00833, P = .002, respectively).
conclusionAntipsychotics may play a role in decreasing the alpha diversity of the gut microbiome among patients with depression and anxiety, and our results indicate a relationship with medication dosage. Future studies are warranted and should consider patients' types and doses of antipsychotics in order to further elucidate the mechanisms of gut-brain interactions in psychiatric disorders.
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