Oral lactobacillus increases GABA

Parts of a paper...

 

NeuroImage

Volume 125, 15 January 2016, Pages 988–995

 

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Magnetic resonance spectroscopy reveals oral Lactobacillus promotion of increases in brain GABA, N-acetyl aspartate and glutamate

 

Rafal Janika, Lynsie A.M. Thomasonb, Andrew M. Stanisze, Paul Forsythec, e, John Bienenstockd, e, Greg J. Stanisza, b, f, ,

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doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.11.018

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Highlights

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We have shown for the first time that the concentrations of certain metabolites increase in the brain following oral treatment with L. rhamnosus and do so with distinct kinetics.

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Both tNAA and Glx increased relatively early after the start of L. rhamnosus die, while GABA was only elevated at four weeks.

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These results suggest beneficial bacteria may alter brain function and offer translational approaches into the clinical setting.

 

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Particularly interesting in this study was the elevated level of GABA, only at 4 weeks, and not thereafter. GABA is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain and appears to be synthesized there since it does not normally cross the blood–brain barrier (Kuriyama and Sze, 1971). However, many bacteria can and do synthesize GABA including JB-1 (Bravo et al., 2011 and Wang et al., 2010). GABA levels have been shown to be decreased in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with MDD (Gerner and Hare, 1981), compatible with the GABAergic deficit theory of anxiety and MDD (Mohler, 2012). Vagal stimulation has been clinically shown to increase GABA levels in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients receiving this for treatment resistant depression (Groves and Brown, 2005). Such results also support the role of the vagus nerve in promoting the neurochemical changes previously seen in GABA receptor quantitation and distribution and may be key to the anxiolytic behavioral changes observed (Bravo et al., 2011).

In summary, we have found significant differential changes in the levels of three important biomarkers of brain function: GABA, NAA and glutamate, after treatment with a specific Lactobacillus strain (JB-1) for 4 weeks and after cessation of treatment for an additional 4 weeks. We were able to obtain these results non-invasively in vivo in individual mice through the use of 7 T MRS. These results suggest that functional brain effects consequent to changes in gut microbiome may occur through defined metabolic pathways in the brain. These observations may now be tested translationally in a clinical setting to examine the efficacy of candidate psychoactive bacteria in the potential treatment of anxiety, MDD or other brain disorders.

 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S105381191501040X

Hi Clona, 

 

Thanks for putting this information on Benzo Buddies-it is very interesting!  I had heard previously to buy yogurt or probiotics with L Rhamnosus in it to help with anxiety and this study just backed that up!  I see so many articles now talking about the gut micro-biome/ brain connection and how if our microbiome is unbalanced  from bad bacteria, viruses, parasites, medicines, etc.  it can affect our immune systems and brains as well.  I really believe that a bout with food poisoning and an allergic reaction to a  colonoscopy prep led to my really bad GI issues.  Between the not being able to eat because of pain and the scary weight loss, I was put on benzos for the bad anxiety that came with it. It has been a real challenge to try and get my GI healthy again.  Fecal transplants are also now being used at the Mayo and Cleveland Clinics for patients with scary infections like C-diff.  I think the gut micro-biome is extremely important and hope more research on it will help so many people with all kinds of physical and mental healthl issues!

Take care! 

Thank you for posting this article.  I have a bottle of this from the health food store still in my fridge which I purchased last time I was on antibiotics.  I plan to start taking them tomorrow.  Greatful for the reminder and the information on how it is helpful with Gaba.

Please note that the stimulatory neurotransmitters, aspartate & glutamate were the first to increase, while there was a further 2 week lag before GABA levels increased.

 

Some BBs may find that they react adversely to this initial increase in stimulation. I can't tell from the abstract whether the penultimate increase in GABA was greater than the increase in the stimulatory NTs, I.E. whether it was net GABA positive.

 

Personally I did not notice any effect from L Rhamnosus supplementation but everyone is different.

 

Remember, according to prevailing wisdom benzos do not cause a deficiency in GABA, they reduce the body's ability to process it.