A review of gut microbiota and Parkinson’s disease

Abstract

In Parkinson’s disease (PD), the alpha-synuclein (α-syn) pathology occurs both in the enteric nervous system (ENS) and parasympathetic nerves in the early stage of PD, which precedes the central nervous system (CNS) pathology and is related to gastrointestinal dysfunction precedes the onset of motor symptoms in PD. Studies have shown that gut microbiota can affect brain activity through the microbiota-gut-brain axis in PD patients. They can promote the development of PD and might be the origin of PD. There are four communication routes between gut microbiota and brain, which respectively are the gut-brain’s neural network, endocrine system, gut immune system, and barrier paths which include intestinal mucosal barrier and blood-brain barrier (BBB). Based on the alteration of fecal microbiota composition in PD, it is worthwhile to investigate whether microbiota analysis could be used as a biomarker for premotor PD. As a potential therapy, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) may be a promising treatment for PD patients. Further studies are needed to elucidate the causal relationship between gut microbiota and PD.

Keywords

Parkinson’s disease (PD) / gut microbiota / gut microbiota-gut-brain axis