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Digestive problems can set the brain up to develop depression
Last reviewed: 30.06.2025
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Gastrointestinal problems are often linked to depression because they are thought to be triggered by the same hormones that drive mood swings. Pankaj Pasricha and colleagues at Stanford believe the opposite may be at work.
His research team conducted an experiment with rats. Young rats were given a compound that was a mild gastrointestinal irritant. When the rats were 10 weeks old, they were tested for signs of depression. The animals showed more signs of depression and higher levels of stress hormones in the brain compared to healthy rats.
Moreover, the disruption of the transmission of clear signals from the nerves in the intestines did not affect depression in animals. This means that pain was not the cause of the disorder. Meanwhile, blocking the receptors responsible for stress hormones in the brain softened the severity of the effects. Scientists want to understand what role the vagus nerve plays here, which allows the intestines to connect with the brain.
However, some people are more predisposed to depression. Understanding which genes are involved may explain why someone is more likely to suffer from this mood disorder.
Jerome Brin from King's College London and his colleagues found a clear link of genetic basis in case of severe depression. He scanned the genome of 800 people, in whose families there were relatives suffering from depression. As a result, an abnormal number of variations in genes on chromosome 3 was revealed. American scientists from Washington University received a similar result.
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