ArticleJournal of neurogastroenterology and motility2020
Effects of a Psychobiotic Supplement on Serum Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor Levels in Depressive Patients: A
Article in Journal of neurogastroenterology and motility, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 14 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 14 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 76 citations in OpenAlex.
- The therapeutic readiness of probiotics in major depressive disorder: A systematic review of randomised controlled trials.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Psychobiotic, nutritional, and behavioral interventions targeting the microbiome-gut-brain axis in depression, anxiety, and stress: a scoping review.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Pooled it
- The efficacy of probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics on anxiety, depression, and sleep: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.BMC psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Impact of probiotic supplementation on serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor: GRADE-based dose-response meta-analysis.BMC nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of Prebiotics and Probiotics on Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety in Clinically Diagnosed Samples: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Nutrition reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Psychobiotics in Depression: Sources, Metabolites, and Treatment-A Systematic Review.Nutrients · 2025Pooled it
- The Effect of Prebiotics and Probiotics on Levels of Depression, Anxiety, and Cognitive Function: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.Brain and behavior · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy and safety of gut microbiome-targeted treatment in patients with depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- The effect and safety of probiotics on depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.European journal of nutrition · 2023Pooled it
- Effect of prebiotics, probiotics, synbiotics on depression: results from a meta-analysis.BMC psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- Probiotics as a Tool for Regulating Molecular Mechanisms in Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Pooled it
- The Role of Psychobiotics in Supporting the Treatment of Disturbances in the Functioning of the Nervous System-A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Pooled it
- The Gut Microbiome in Depression and Potential Benefit of Prebiotics, Probiotics and Synbiotics: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials and Observational Studies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Efficacy of Adjunct PRObiotics as Compared to the Standard Care in Moderate Unipolar Depression Among Geriatric Patients: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Pilot Multi-Center Trial (PRODG).Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2026Trial
- Metabolic Status Influences Probiotic Efficacy for Depression-PRO-DEMET Randomized Clinical Trial Results.Nutrients · 2024Trial
- Trial
- The Adolescent Microbiome-Gut-Brain Axis: Development, Mechanisms, and Translational Perspectives.Nutrients · 2026Review
- The Impact of Psychobiotic Therapy on Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in Patients with Post-COVID Syndrome-A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.Metabolites · 2026Article
- From association to causality: mechanistic pathways linking the gut microbiome to psychiatric disorders.Translational psychiatry · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background/Aims: Psychobiotics are probiotics or prebiotics that, upon ingestion in adequate amounts, yield positive influence on mental health via microbiota-gut-brain axis regulation to modulate the circulating cytokines, chemokines, neurotransmitters, or neurotrophins levels. We have recently shown that a psychobiotic combination ( Methods: Our study was a double-blind, randomized controlled trial of patients with low-to-moderate depression receiving either a probiotic combination, prebiotic or placebo. From the 110 patients randomized in the trial, 78 were included in this Results: We found that post-intervention BDNF levels were significantly different between groups ( Conclusion: Eight-week supplementation with B. longum and L. helveticus in depressive patients improved depression symptoms, possibly by increasing BDNF levels.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.