Microviridae bacteriophages influence behavioural hallmarks of food addiction via tryptophan and tyrosine signalling pathways

Abstract

Food addiction contributes to the obesity pandemic, but the connection between how the gut microbiome is linked to food addiction remains largely unclear. Here we show that Microviridae bacteriophages, particularly Gokushovirus WZ-2015a, are associated with food addiction and obesity across multiple human cohorts. Further analyses reveal that food addiction and Gokushovirus are linked to serotonin and dopamine metabolism. Mice receiving faecal microbiota and viral transplantation from human donors with the highest Gokushovirus load exhibit increased food addiction along with changes in tryptophan, serotonin and dopamine metabolism in different regions of the brain, together with alterations in dopamine receptors. Mechanistically, targeted tryptophan analysis shows lower anthranilic acid (AA) concentrations associated with Gokushovirus. AA supplementation in mice decreases food addiction and alters pathways related to the cycle of neurotransmitter synthesis release. In Drosophila, AA regulates feeding behaviour and addiction-like ethanol preference. In summary, this study proposes that bacteriophages in the gut microbiome contribute to regulating food addiction by modulating tryptophan and tyrosine metabolism. Castells-Nobau et al. provide insight into how bacteriophages in the gut microbiome contribute to regulating food addiction by modulating tryptophan and tyrosine metabolism in the host.