부산대학교 도서관

Introduction: Recent therapeutics for Major Depressive Disorder have been developed to target the gut microbiome and its bidirectional communication with the enteric and central nervous systems. One proposed mechanism for these therapeutics is through the interaction of the gut microbiome with the vagus nerve, affecting vagal tone and activity. A non-invasive way to observe possible changes in vagus nerve activity and vagal tone is through monitoring of heart rate variability (HRV) using an ECG. Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to investigate changes in HRV in individuals with depression before, during, and after supplementation with Probio' Stick® (Lallemand Health Solutions, Canada) and Microbial Ecosystem Therapeutic-2 (MET-2; Nubiyota, Canada). The secondary objective is to asses changes in EEG signals and their correlation with HRV in said individuals. Methods: Participants will consist of individuals with mild to moderate depression taking part in ongoing randomized controlled trials investigating gut microbiome supplementation for depression. Over the course of 12 weeks, individuals will receive three ECGs and EEGs as well as be monitored for changes in their depressive symptoms. Results: It is expected that changes in participant's HRV, as well as distinct EEG signal changes, will correlate with a decrease in depressive symptoms, thus giving insight into the mechanism of action for these therapeutics. It is also expected that these changes will be towards values seen in healthy controls. Conclusions: The findings of this study may help elucidate the mechanism of action for microbial therapy in reducing depressive symptoms, leading to advances in the development of depression therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]