New Research Connects Brain and Gut Interaction

Research from Cornell shows relationship between gut microbes and brain cells.

Although your head and your stomach may be far apart, they aren’t as disconnected as you may think. Weill Cornell Medicine recently published new research linking communication between gut microbes and brain cells. Although links between gut and brain health have been connected through research conducted over the past two decades, the focus leaned toward a connection between these two areas, not necessarily an explanation as to how they affect one another. This research offers insight into how chronic gastrointestinal conditions influence behavior and mental health. Researches said their study is helping them understand ways in which the gut can influence diseases like autism, Parkinson’s, post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

This system of communication between your brain and your gut is called the gut-brain axis. They are linked by the central nervous system and the enteric nervous system, which contains more than 100 million nerve cells that line the are from your gastrointestinal tract from esophagus to rectum. The brain and gut are connected physically, through nerves and neurons, and biochemically, through neurotransmitters. The vagus nerve is the biggest nerve connecting these two areas, both of which contain neurons that connect through nerves within your nervous system. These neurons tell your body how to behave. The neurotransmitters in your body control feelings and emotions. Although commonly thought of as produced in the brain, there are also neurotransmitters produced in your gut as well that control emotions and feelings.

Cornell’s recent research, published Oct. 23, was conducted using mouse models. Researchers studied brain chemicals in the mice to see how they behaved. The evidence they found supported a conclusion that chemicals found in gut microbes played a major role in determining how the mice felt and responded to their environment. How one feels and how they respond to an environment is typically controlled by brain chemicals, which is why the evidence the team found is a breakthrough in understanding the brain-gut axis connection.