Research
Hormonal
Gut microbiota modulate appetite by influencing the metabolism of Tryptophan (Trp) into serotonin (5-HT) and indole derivatives, which regulate satiety and intestinal permeability.
Tryptophan metabolism by gut bacteria influences serotonin levels, which affect appetite. However, because results are inconsistent and depend on dosage and health status, focus on whole-food sources of tryptophan (e.g., turkey, eggs, seeds) rather than high-dose supplements for appetite control.
LimitedQualifiesLOW confidence
gut microbiota participates in the 5-HT production and influences the serotonergic neuronal networks... indole and its derivate... produced by Edwardsiella tarda, form Trp that can bind with transient receptor potential ankyrin Aa (Trpa1) to enhance 5-HT secretion from enteroendocrine cells
Why this rating
The paper highlights inconsistent and contradictory results regarding Trp supplementation and appetite.
Source
From gut microbiota to host appetite: gut microbiota-derived metabolites as key regulators
Hui Han et al. · Microbiome · 2021
DOI 10.1186/s40168-021-01093-y
narrative_reviewCited 285×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Gut microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) regulate host appetite by binding to G-protein-coupled receptors (FFAR2/FFAR3) to stimulate the secretion of anorexigenic hormones (GLP-1, PYY) and directly acting on hypothalamic neurons.Moderate
- Gut microbiota-derived bacterial protein ClpB acts as a molecular mimic of alpha-MSH, directly activating anorexigenic neurons and stimulating the secretion of satiety hormones (PYY, GLP-1) to induce satiety.Moderate
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