The Mosaic Brain: Sex/Gender and the Neurosciences

Brain function is influenced by internal inputs from many parts of the body, including chemicals in the blood and bacteria in the gut. The gut microbiota is a fundamental component of the body that can be transferred across generations and contribute to the unique features of the human phenotype influencing both health and disease. Deciphering the controlling mechanisms of microbiome-bodybrain interactions may help in identifying new molecular targets to prevent and/or treat a range of psychiatric and neurologic disorders as well as their physical comorbidities. Here we provide an update on the functioning of the gut microbiome-body-brain axis and outline open scientific challenges and future research directions.