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Case-control study of the effects of gut microbiota composition on neurotransmitter metabolic pathways in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
The purpose of this 2020 study was to analyze the microbiota living in the gut of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and to determine the role of the gut microbiota in the development of this disorder. Wan et al. recruited 17 young children (aged 6-12 years) with ADHD who were treated in the Chinese PLA General Hospital in 2019, and 16 healthy children without ADHD (aged 6-12 years). Fecal samples were taken from the participants to compare the differences in abundance of bacteria between the two groups. There was no significant difference in diversity of bacteria between the children with and without ADHD. But the scientists noticed markedly lower populations of Faecalibacterium and Veillonellaceae, and higher abundances of Odoribacter and Enterococcus in the ADHD group compared with the control group. Moreover, there appeared to be dissimilarities in the metabolic pathways of neurotransmitters (including serotonin and dopamine) between the two groups. This study concluded that distinct compositions of the gut microbiota may influence the brain-gut axis and neurotransmitter levels, which can in turn affect ADHD symptoms. [NPID: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD, children, China, Chinese, bacteria, microbiota, microbiome, neurotransmitters]
Year: 2020
