Gut-brain axis research in schizophrenia: Historical evolution, emerging computational models, and translational...

Long before the first symptoms of psychosis were categorized, late eighteenth-century practitioners of psychiatry had frequently noted that their patients suffered from acute stomach pain, skin rashes, and heart irregularities, suggesting at least a handful of them to think of an underlying mind-body pathology. The psychiatric community began debating the connection between mental illness and the body more frequently by the late nineteenth century. Throughout the late 20th century, the body in schizophrenia was largely viewed as a vessel for side effects, a repository for the metabolic consequences of antipsychotic medication. However, we are currently witnessing a visceral turn in the field, a theoretical and methodological shift moving from the brain-only models to mind-body models of psychopathology. This shift acknowledges that the brain isn't just a distinct entity; it is inextricably tethered to the rhythmic oscillations of the visceral organs. This article tries to trace the evolution of the methods used to understand the gut brain axis better. How the understanding evolved from merely trying to understand situational reactivity to a how broader stress-regulatory networks function in the body. The evolution of the brain-gut axis in schizophrenia, from the analog stress tests of 1982 to the network coupling models of 2025, reveals a clear trajectory. We have moved from viewing visceral symptoms as noise to recognizing them as a crucial signal. Current evidence suggests that the gut is key to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders.