The gut microbiota contributes to pain in fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a prevalent syndrome characterized by widespread pain in the absence of evident tissue injury or pathology, making it one of the most mysterious chronic pain conditions. It is thought to result from an overall increased sensitivity to pain. The composition of the gut microbiota in individuals with fibromyalgia differs from that of healthy controls, but its functional role in the syndrome was unknown. A new study by Weihua Cai, working in the laboratory of Arkady Khoutorsky at McGill University, shows that gut microbiota from women with fibromyalgia (FM) can cause chronic pain and related symptoms in mice. This study shows altered gut microbiota has a role in fibromyalgia pain, highlighting it as a promising target for therapeutic interventions.
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Cai W, Haddad M, Haddad R, Kesten I, Hoffman T, Laan R, Westfall S, Defaye M, Abdullah NS, Wong C, Brown N, Tansley S, Lister KC, Hooshmandi M, Wang F, Lorenzo LE, Hovhannisyan V, Ho-Tieng D, Kumar V, Sharif B, Thurairajah B, Fan J, Sahar T, Clayton C, Wu N, Zhang J, Bar-Yoseph H, Pitashny M, Krock E, Mogil JS, Prager-Khoutorsky M, Séguéla P, Altier C, King IL, De Koninck Y, Brereton NJB, Gonzalez E, Shir Y, Minerbi A, Khoutorsky A. The gut microbiota promotes pain in fibromyalgia. Neuron. 2025 Jul 9;113(13):2161-2175.e13. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2025.03.032. Epub 2025 Apr 24. PMID: 40280127.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0896627325002521?via%3Dihub
