New insights into the interactions between the gut microbiota and the inflammatory response to ulcerative colitis in a mouse model of dextran sodium sulfate and possible mechanisms of action for treatment with PE&AFWE.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), comprising Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is a heterogeneous state of chronic intestinal inflammation. Intestinal innate immunity, including innate immune cells, defends against pathogens and excessive entry of gut microbiota, while preserving immune tolerance to resident intestinal microbiota, and may be characterized by its capacity to produce a rapid and nonspecific reaction. The association between microbiota dysbiosis and the pathogenesis of IBD is complex and dynamic. When the intestinal ecosystem is in dysbiosis, the reduced abundance and diversity of intestinal gut microbiota make the host more vulnerable to the attack of exogenous and endogenous pathogenic gut microbiota. The aim of our study was to comprehensively assess the relationship between microbial populations within UC, the signaling pathways of pathogenic gut microbe therein and the inflammatory response, as well as to understand the effects of using PE&AFWE (poppy extract [Papaver nudicaule L.] and Artemisia frigida Willd. extract) on UC modulation.
A UC mouse model was established by inducing SPF-grade C57BL/6 mice using dextrose sodium sulfate (DSS). Based on metagenomic sequencing to characterize the gut microbiome, the relationship between gut microbiota dysbiosis and gut microbiota was further studied using random forest and Bayesian network analysis methods, as well as histopathological analysis.
(1) We found that the 5 gut microbiota with the highest relative abundance of inflammatory bowel disease UC model gut microbiota were consistent with the top 5 ranked natural bacteria. There were three types of abundance changes in the model groups: increases (Chlamydiae/Proteobacteria and Deferribacteres), decreases (Firmicutes), and no significant changes (Bacteroidetes). The UC model group was significantly different from the control group, with 1308 differentially expressed species with abundance changes greater than or equal to 2-fold. (2) The proportion of the fecal flora in the UC group decreased by 37.5% in the Firmicutes and increased by 14.29% in the proportion of Proteobacteria compared to the control group before treatment. (3) The significantly enriched and increased signaling pathways screened were the 'arachidonic acid metabolic pathway' and the 'phagosomal pathway', which both showed a decreasing trend after drug administration. (4) Based on the causal relationship between different OTUs and the UC model/PE&AFWE administration, screening for directly relevant OTU networks, the UC group was found to directly affect OTU69, followed by a cascade of effects on OTU12, OTU121, OTU93, and OTU7, which may be the pathway of action that initiated the pathological changes in normal mice. (5) We identified a causal relationship between common differentially expressed OTUs and PE&AFWE and UC in the pre- and post-PE&AFWE-treated groups. Thereby, we learned that PE&AFWE can directly affect OTU90, after which it inhibits UC, inhibiting the activity of arachidonic acid metabolic pathway by affecting OTU118, which in turn inhibits the colonization of gut microbiota by OTU93 and OTU7. (6) Histopathological observation and scoring (HS) of the colon showed that there was a significant difference between the model group and the control group (p < 0.001), and that there was a significant recovery in both the sulfasalazine (SASP)and the PE&AFWE groups after the administration of the drug (p < 0.0001).
We demonstrated causal effects and inflammatory metabolic pathways in gut microbiota dysbiosis and IBD, with five opportunistic pathogens directly contributing to IBD. PE&AFWE reduced the abundance of proteobacteria in the gut microbiota, and histopathology showed significant improvement.
Fu Q
,Ma X
,Li S
,Shi M
,Song T
,Cui J
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Intestinal Dysbiosis in Carriers of Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae.
Infection with carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) has become an important challenge in health care settings and a growing concern worldwide. Since infection is preceded by colonization, an understanding of the latter may reduce CRE infections. We aimed to characterize the gut microbiota in CRE carriers, assuming that microbiota alterations precede CRE colonization. We evaluated the gut microbiota using 16S rRNA gene sequencing extracted of fecal samples collected from hospitalized CRE carriers and two control groups, hospitalized noncarriers and healthy adults. The microbiota diversity and composition in CRE-colonized patients differed from those of the control group participants. These CRE carriers displayed lower phylogenetic diversity and dysbiotic microbiota, enriched with members of the family Enterobacteriaceae Concurrent with the enrichment in Enterobacteriaceae, a depletion of anaerobic commensals was observed. Additionally, changes in several predicted metabolic pathways were observed for the CRE carriers. Concomitantly, we found higher prevalence of bacteremia in the CRE carriers. Several clinical factors that might induce changes in the microbiota were examined and found to be insignificant between the groups. The compositional and functional changes in the microbiota of CRE-colonized patients are associated with increased risk for systemic infection. Our study results provide justification for attempts to restore the dysbiotic microbiota with probiotics or fecal transplantation.IMPORTANCE The gut microbiota plays important roles in the host's normal function and health, including protection against colonization by pathogenic bacteria. Alterations in the gut microbial profile can potentially serve as an early diagnostic tool, as well as a therapeutic strategy against colonization by and carriage of harmful bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant pathogens. Here, we show that the microbiota of hospitalized patients demonstrated specific taxa which differed between carriers of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and noncarriers. The difference in the microbiota also dictates alterations in microbiome-specific metabolic capabilities, in association with increased prevalence of systemic infection. Reintroducing specific strains and/or correction of dysbiosis with probiotics or fecal transplantation may potentially lead to colonization by bacterial taxa responsible for protection against or depletion of antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
Korach-Rechtman H
,Hreish M
,Fried C
,Gerassy-Vainberg S
,Azzam ZS
,Kashi Y
,Berger G
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