Does Gut Microbiome Composition Influence the Efficacy of Psychiatric Drugs?

Abstract

Altered gut microbiome profiles correlate with anxiety and depression in humans, and work in animal models has identified specific bacterial taxa and/or microbiome-derived metabolites that influence complex emotional behaviours. Intriguingly, many pharmaceuticals, including widely used oral treatments for anxiety and depression, can be chemically modified by microbes in the gastrointestinal tract, which may lead to drug inactivation. The authors highlight the importance of integrating research across microbial culture systems, animal models, and multi-omics analyses of clinical cohorts to gain mechanistic insights into whether microbiome composition determines efficacy, bioavailability, and tolerability of neuropsychiatric medications. This hypothesis, if validated, may have profound implications for personalised drug treatment plans and microbiome-based biomarker development.

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