Gut–brain axis (GBA)

The **gut–brain axis** refers to the complex bidirectional biochemical signaling network connecting the gastrointestinal tract—including its resident microbiota—and the central nervous system. This communication involves neural pathways (vagus nerve, enteric nervous system), endocrine signals (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis), immune mediators (cytokines), and microbial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids. The gut-brain axis plays critical roles in regulating mood, cognition, stress response, metabolism, immune function, and gastrointestinal health. Disruptions in this network have been implicated in various conditions including depression/anxiety disorders, neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, autism spectrum disorder, obesity/metabolic syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, and colitis. While numerous therapies aim to modulate this physiological system—often through diet modification or supplementation with probiotics/prebiotics—the “gut-brain axis” itself is not a discrete therapeutic target such as an individual receptor or enzyme but rather an integrated physiological concept encompassing multiple organs and signaling molecules. Note: The entry "Gut-brain axis modulation" does **not** refer to a single molecule/receptor/therapeutic target but instead describes an entire physiological communication network. Therefore: *is_incorrect = true* — This is not suitable for structured drug-target databases that require discrete molecular entities.

Other names

Microbiota–gut–brain axisMicrobiome–gut–brain axisGut-brain communication pathway

Interventions act by altering microbiome composition or metabolite production—such as short-chain fatty acids—or by influencing neural/endocrine/immune pathways rather than direct molecular binding.