Title:The Role of the Vagus Nerve in the Microbiome and Digestive System in Relation to Epilepsy
Volume: 31
Issue: 37
Author(s): Carmen Rubio, Ernesto Ochoa, Fernando Gatica, Alonso Portilla, David Vázquez and Moisés Rubio-Osornio*
Affiliation:
- Departamento de Neuroquímica, Instituto
Nacional de Neurología y Neurocirugía, Mexico city, Mexico
Keywords:
Epilepsy, enteric nervous system, glutamate, GABA, gut microbiome, epileptogenesis.
Abstract: The Enteric Nervous System (ENS) is described as a division of the Peripheral
Nervous System (PNS), located within the gut wall and it is formed by two main
plexuses: the myenteric plexus (Auerbach's) and the submucosal plexus (Meissner's).
The contribution of the ENS to the pathophysiology of various neurological diseases
such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease has been described in the literature, while
some other studies have found a connection between epilepsy and the gastrointestinal
tract. The above could be explained by cholinergic neurons and neurotransmission systems
in the myenteric and submucosal plexuses, regulating the vagal excitability effect.
It is also understandable, as the discharges arising in the amygdala are transmitted to the
intestine through projections the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus, giving rise to efferent
fibers that stimulate the gastrointestinal tract and consequently the symptoms at this
level. Therefore, this review's main objective is to argue in favor of the existing relationship
of the ENS with the Central Nervous System (CNS) as a facilitator of epileptogenic
or ictogenic mechanisms. The gut microbiota also participates in this interaction; however,
it depends on many individual factors of each human being. The link between the
ENS and the CNS is a poorly studied epileptogenic site with a big impact on one of the
most prevalent neurological conditions such as epilepsy.