Frontiers in microbiologySep 4, 2026

Physical activity levels linked to gut bacteria patterns in people with mild depression

Gut-Brain Axis Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗OA ↗

Updated Sep 5, 2026

Abstract

Subthreshold depression (SD) is associated with a high prevalence and significant risk of progression to major depressive disorder (MDD).

SD represents a subclinical state that lies between mental health and MDD.
Physical activity (PA) may have antidepressant effects by influencing the gut-brain axis.
The relationship between PA levels and gut microbiota profiles in individuals with SD is not well understood.

Simplified

Subthreshold depression (SD) represents a subclinical state between mental health and major depressive disorder (MDD) and is associated with a high prevalence and substantial risk of progression to MDD. Physical activity (PA) has been proposed to exert antidepressant effects through modulation of the gut-brain axis. However, the association between PA level and gut microbiota profiles in individuals with SD remains poorly understood.

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.

View Full Text ↗

Featured in

Gut-Brain AxisIssue #53

Your gut bacteria may be steering Alzheimer's and Parkinson's through a molecular relay system

Weekly Gut-Brain Axis Brief

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

Get 7 new gut-brain axis papers each week, explained in plain English with direct links to the originals.

What Lands in Your Inbox Each Week:

📚7 fresh studies
📝plain-language summaries
✅direct links to original studies
🏅top journal indicators
📅weekly delivery
🧘‍♂️always free

Recent issues from the gut-brain axis brief

Your gut bacteria may be steering Alzheimer's and Parkinson's through a molecular relay system

yesterday7 studies

Probiotics cut a key Alzheimer's protein in older adults with early memory problems

1 week ago7 studies

A gut bacterium blocked cadmium's brain damage in mice — without touching metal levels

2 weeks ago7 studies

Oyster shells, Korean rice wine, and a probiotic: gut-brain science got weird this week

3 weeks ago7 studies

Fecal transplants in twins with autism improved symptoms — and the gut microbiome shifted too

4 weeks ago7 studies

Microplastics you swallow can damage your brain without ever reaching it

5 weeks ago7 studies

Your gut microbiome might reveal whether your depression is heading toward Parkinson's

6 weeks ago7 studies

A fiber supplement restored brain chemical balance in mice with vascular cognitive impairment

7 weeks ago7 studies

CBD nanoparticles engineered to cross the blood-brain barrier improved cognition in an Alzheimer's mouse model

8 weeks ago7 studies

Weed killer at legal exposure doses rewired mice's social behavior through their gut bacteria

9 weeks ago7 studies

explore the archive

See more issues from the gut-brain axis brief