Diversity analysis of gut microbiota between healthy controls and those with atopic dermatitis in a Chinese population

AbstractThe pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD) involves complex factors, including gut microbiota and immune modulation, which remain poorly understood. The aim of this study was to restore gut microbiota via fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) to ameliorate AD in mice. FMT was performed using stool from donor mice. The gut microbiota was characterized via 16S rRNA sequencing and analyzed using Quantitative Insights into Microbial Ecology 2 with the DADA2 plugin. Gut metabolite levels were determined by measuring fecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) contents. AD-induced allergic responses were evaluated by analyzing blood parameters (IgE levels and eosinophil percentage, eosinophil count, basophil percentage, and monocyte percentage), the levels of Th1 and Th2 cytokines, dermatitis score, and the number of mast cells in the ileum and skin tissues. Calprotectin level was measured to assess gut inflammation after FMT. FMT resulted in the restoration of gut microbiota to the donor state and increases in the levels of SCFAs as gut metabolites. In addition, FMT restored the Th1/Th2 balance, modulated Tregs through gut microbiota, and reduced IgE levels and the numbers of mast cells, eosinophils, and basophils. FMT is associated with restoration of gut microbiota and immunologic balance (Th1/Th2) along with suppression of AD-induced allergic responses and is thus a potential new therapy for AD.

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Gut Microbiome Changes in Captive Plateau Zokors (Eospalax baileyi)

Evolutionary Bioinformatics ◽

10.1177/1176934321996353 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 ◽

pp. 117693432199635

Author(s):

Daoxin Liu ◽

Pengfei Song ◽

Jingyan Yan ◽

Haijing Wang ◽

Zhenyuan Cai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gut Microbiota ◽

Gut Microbiome ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Tibet Plateau ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Diversity Analysis ◽

Bacterial Phyla ◽

In Captivity ◽

Relative Abundances ◽

Plateau Zokor

Wild-caught animals must cope with drastic lifestyle and dietary changes after being induced to captivity. How the gut microbiome structure of these animals will change in response receives increasing attention. The plateau zokor ( Eospalax baileyi), a typic subterranean rodent endemic to the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, spends almost the whole life underground and is well adapted to the environmental pressures of both plateau and underground. However, how the gut microbiome of the plateau zokor will change in response to captivity has not been reported to date. This study compared the microbial community structure and functions of 22 plateau zokors before (the WS group) and after being kept in captivity for 15 days (the LS group, fed on carrots) using the 16S rRNA gene via high-throughput sequencing technology. The results showed that the LS group retained 973 of the 977 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in the WS group, and no new OTUs were found in the LS group. The dominant bacterial phyla were Bacteroides and Firmicutes in both groups. In alpha diversity analysis, the Shannon, Sobs, and ACE indexes of the LS group were significantly lower than those of the WS group. A remarkable difference ( P < 0.01) between groups was also detected in beta diversity analysis. The UPGMA clustering, NMDS, PCoA, and Anosim results all showed that the intergroup difference was significantly greater than the intragroup difference. And compared with the WS group, the intragroup difference of the gut microbiota in the LS group was much larger, which failed to support the assumption that similar diets should drive convergence of gut microbial communities. PICRUSt revealed that although some functional categories displayed significant differences between groups, the relative abundances of these categories were very close in both groups. Based on all the results, we conclude that as plateau zokors enter captivity for a short time, although the relative abundances of different gut microbiota categories shifted significantly, they can maintain almost all the OTUs and the functions of the gut microbiota in the wild. So, the use of wild-caught plateau zokors in gut microbial studies is acceptable if the time in captivity is short.

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Skin Barrier Function in Psoriasis and Atopic Dermatitis: Transepidermal Water Loss and Temperature as Useful Tools to Assess Disease Severity

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10020359 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 359 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Trinidad Montero-Vilchez ◽

María-Victoria Segura-Fernández-Nogueras ◽

Isabel Pérez-Rodríguez ◽

Miguel Soler-Gongora ◽

Antonio Martinez-Lopez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atopic Dermatitis ◽

Disease Severity ◽

Water Loss ◽

Barrier Function ◽

Skin Barrier ◽

Transepidermal Water Loss ◽

Diagnostic Tools ◽

Psoriatic Skin ◽

Skin Barrier Function ◽

Healthy Controls

Multiple diagnostic tools are used to evaluate psoriasis and atopic dermatitis (AD) severity, but most of them are based on subjective components. Transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and temperature are skin barrier function parameters that can be objectively measured and could help clinicians to evaluate disease severity accurately. Thus, the aims of this study are: (1) to compare skin barrier function between healthy skin, psoriatic skin and AD skin; and (2) to assess if skin barrier function parameters could predict disease severity. A cross-sectional study was designed, and epidermal barrier function parameters were measured. The study included 314 participants: 157 healthy individuals, 92 psoriatic patients, and 65 atopic dermatitis patients. TEWL was significantly higher, while stratum corneum hydration (SCH) (8.71 vs. 38.43 vs. 44.39 Arbitrary Units (AU)) was lower at psoriatic plaques than at uninvolved psoriatic skin and healthy controls. Patients with both TEWL > 13.85 g·m−2h−1 and temperature > 30.85 °C presented a moderate/severe psoriasis (psoriasis area severity index (PASI) ≥ 7), with a specificity of 76.3%. TEWL (28.68 vs. 13.15 vs. 11.60 g·m−2 h−1) and temperature were significantly higher, while SCH (25.20 vs. 40.95 vs. 50.73 AU) was lower at AD eczematous lesions than uninvolved AD skin and healthy controls. Patients with a temperature > 31.75 °C presented a moderate/severe AD (SCORing Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) ≥ 37) with a sensitivity of 81.8%. In conclusion, temperature and TEWL values may help clinicians to determine disease severity and select patients who need intensive treatment.

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A Combined Analysis of Gut and Skin Microbiota in Infants with Food Allergy and Atopic Dermatitis: A Pilot Study

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu13051682 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (5) ◽

pp. 1682

Author(s):

Ewa Łoś-Rycharska ◽

Marcin Gołębiewski ◽

Marcin Sikora ◽

Tomasz Grzybowski ◽

Marta Gorzkiewicz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atopic Dermatitis ◽

Food Allergy ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Skin Microbiota ◽

Fecal Samples ◽

Healthy Infants ◽

Α Diversity

The gut microbiota in patients with food allergy, and the skin microbiota in atopic dermatitis patients differ from those of healthy people. We hypothesize that relationships may exist between gut and skin microbiota in patients with allergies. The aim of this study was to determine the possible relationship between gut and skin microbiota in patients with allergies, hence simultaneous analysis of the two compartments of microbiota was performed in infants with and without allergic symptoms. Fifty-nine infants with food allergy and/or atopic dermatitis and 28 healthy children were enrolled in the study. The skin and gut microbiota were evaluated using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. No significant differences in the α-diversity of dermal or fecal microbiota were observed between allergic and non-allergic infants; however, a significant relationship was found between bacterial community structure and allergy phenotypes, especially in the fecal samples. Certain clinical conditions were associated with characteristic bacterial taxa in the skin and gut microbiota. Positive correlations were found between skin and fecal samples in the abundance of Gemella among allergic infants, and Lactobacillus and Bacteroides among healthy infants. Although infants with allergies and healthy infants demonstrate microbiota with similar α-diversity, some differences in β-diversity and bacterial species abundance can be seen, which may depend on the phenotype of the allergy. For some organisms, their abundance in skin and feces samples may be correlated, and these correlations might serve as indicators of the host’s allergic state.

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Synbiotics Alleviate the Gut Indole Load and Dysbiosis in Chronic Kidney Disease

Cells ◽

10.3390/cells10010114 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 114

Author(s):

Chih-Yu Yang ◽

Ting-Wen Chen ◽

Wan-Lun Lu ◽

Shih-Shin Liang ◽

Hsien-Da Huang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chronic Kidney Disease ◽

Kidney Disease ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Statistical Significance ◽

Additional Treatment ◽

Indoxyl Sulfate ◽

Uremic Toxin ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Gut Dysbiosis ◽

Novel Concept

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has long been known to cause significant digestive tract pathology. Of note, indoxyl sulfate is a gut microbe-derived uremic toxin that accumulates in CKD patients. Nevertheless, the relationship between gut microbiota, fecal indole content, and blood indoxyl sulfate level remains unknown. In our study, we established an adenine-induced CKD rat model, which recapitulates human CKD-related gut dysbiosis. Synbiotic treatment in CKD rats showed a significant reduction in both the indole-producing bacterium Clostridium and fecal indole amount. Furthermore, gut microbiota diversity was reduced in CKD rats but was restored after synbiotic treatment. Intriguingly, in our end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients, the abundance of indole-producing bacteria, Bacteroides, Prevotella, and Clostridium, is similar to that of healthy controls. Consistently, the fecal indole tends to be higher in the ESKD patients, but the difference did not achieve statistical significance. However, the blood level of indoxyl sulfate was significantly higher than that of healthy controls, implicating that under an equivalent indole production rate, the impaired renal excretion contributes to the accumulation of this notorious uremic toxin. On the other hand, we did identify two short-chain fatty acid-producing bacteria, Faecalibacterium and Roseburia, were reduced in ESKD patients as compared to the healthy controls. This may contribute to gut dysbiosis. We also identified that three genera Fusobacterium, Shewanella, and Erwinia, in the ESKD patients but not in the healthy controls. Building up gut symbiosis to treat CKD is a novel concept, but once proved effective, it will provide an additional treatment strategy for CKD patients.

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Improvement of Gut Diversity and Composition After Direct-Acting Antivirals in Hepatitis C Virus–Infected Patients With or Without Human Immunodeficiency Virus Coinfection

The Journal of Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1093/infdis/jiab094 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Natthaya Chuaypen ◽

Thananya Jinato ◽

Anchalee Avihingsanon ◽

Sakkarin Chirapongsathorn ◽

Supapon Cheevadhanarak ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Human Immunodeficiency Virus ◽

Hepatitis C Virus ◽

Hepatitis C ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Alpha Diversity ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Direct Acting Antivirals ◽

Microbial Dysbiosis ◽

Immunodeficiency Virus ◽

Direct Acting

Abstract Background The influence of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) on the composition of gut microbiota in hepatitis C virus (HCV)–infected patients with or without human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is unclear. Methods We enrolled 62 patients with HCV monoinfection and 24 patients with HCV/HIV coinfection receiving elbasvir-grazoprevir from a clinical trial. Fecal specimens collected before treatment and 12 weeks after treatment were analyzed using amplicon-based 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing. Results Sustained virological response rates in the monoinfection and coinfection groups were similar (98.4% vs 95.8%). Pretreatment bacterial communities in the patient groups were less diverse and distinct from those of healthy controls. Compared with HCV-monoinfected patients, HCV/HIV-coinfected individuals showed comparable microbial alpha diversity but decreased Firmicutes-Bacteroidetes ratios. The improvement of microbial dysbiosis was observed in responders achieving sustained virological response across fibrosis stages but was not found in nonresponders. Responders with a low degree of fibrosis exhibited a recovery in alpha diversity to levels comparable to those in healthy controls. Reciprocal alterations of increased beneficial bacteria and reduced pathogenic bacteria were also observed in responders. Conclusions This study indicates a short-term effect of direct-acting antivirals in restoration of microbial dysbiosis. The favorable changes in gut microbiota profiles after viral eradication might contribute toward the reduction of HCV-related complications among infected individuals.

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Plasma interleukin-21 levels and genetic variants are associated with susceptibility to rheumatoid arthritis

BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders ◽

10.1186/s12891-021-04111-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Youguo Hao ◽

Lijun Xie ◽

Jing Xia ◽

Zhen Liu ◽

Baoxiu Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽

Genetic Variants ◽

Chinese Population ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽

Das28 Score ◽

Single Nucleotide ◽

Chronic Inflammatory Condition ◽

Chinese Subjects ◽

Pro Inflammatory Cytokines

Abstract Background Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory condition characterized by autoantibodies development and an elevated spectrum of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Previous reports highlighted a relationship between IL-21and the pathogenesis of RA. Although elevated IL-21 levels have been reported in RA patients, the association of common IL-21 genetic variants with a predisposition to RA development in the Chinese population lacks. Materials and methods Five hundred and fourteen Chinese subjects (healthy controls: 303 and rheumatoid arthritis patients: 211) were enrolled in the study. Clinical data of patients were collected from medical records, and patients were treated as per the guidelines. Common single nucleotide polymorphisms in the IL-21 gene (rs907715, rs2221903, rs2055979 and rs6822844) were genotyped by TaqMan SNPs genotyping method. IL-21 level in plasma of RA patients and healthy subjects was measured by ELISA. Results The plasma level of IL-21 was significantly higher in subjects with rheumatoid arthritis relative to healthy controls (p < 0.0001). A positive correlation was observed between IL-21 level and DAS28 score, indicating the association of the cytokine with the worsening of the disease (Spearman r = 0.61, p < 0.0001). The prevalence of AA genotype (rs2055979) was significantly higher in RA subjects than in the controls (p < 0.0001, χ2 = 34.73, OR = 4.34, 95% CI = 2.623 to 7.219). Furthermore, elevated plasma IL-21 was observed in the rs2055979-AA genotype compared to CC type (p < 0.0001). Conclusion IL-21 plays a crucial function in rheumatoid arthritis pathogenesis. IL-21 rs2055979 polymorphism is associated with IL-21 plasma levels and is predisposed to RA development in the Chinese population.

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Prevalence and reclassification of BRCA1 and BRCA2 variants in a large, unselected Chinese Han breast cancer cohort

Journal of Hematology & Oncology ◽

10.1186/s13045-020-01010-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yun Liu ◽

Honglian Wang ◽

Xin Wang ◽

Jiaqi Liu ◽

Junjian Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Risk Assessment ◽

Chinese Population ◽

Functional Assay ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Brca1 And Brca2 ◽

Chinese Han ◽

Pathogenic Variants ◽

Breast Cancer Cohort ◽

Invasive Carcinomas

AbstractAccurate interpretation of BRCA1/2 variants is critical for risk assessment and precise treatment of breast cancer (BC). Hence, the establishment of an ethnicity-based BRCA1/2 variant database of the Chinese population is of paramount importance. In this study, panel-based sequencing served to detect BRCA1/2 variants in a Chinese multicenter cohort of 21,216 BC patients and 6434 healthy controls. Overall, the percentage of subjects carrying pathogenic variants was 5.5% (1174/21,216) in BC patients and 1.1% (71/6434) in healthy controls. We identified 13 pathogenic variants as high-frequency variants that had a frequency of > 0.45‰ in BC patients (≥ 10 in 21,216 patients), none of which has been reported in Caucasians. Pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants correlated with younger onset age, higher frequencies of bilateral and triple-negative BC (TNBC), invasive carcinomas, high histological grades, and family history of BC and other cancers. Furthermore, the percentage of the subjects carrying VUS was 9.8% (2071/21,216) in BC patients and 6.9% (446/6434) in healthy controls. Based on our cohort study, we unambiguously reclassified 7 out of the 858 VUS resulting in lower VUS ratio in patients (from 9.8 to 7.9%) as well as in healthy control (from 6.9 to 5.3%). We also re-analyzed the 100 variants in 13 exons (2–5 and 15–23) of the BRCA1 genes using a functional assay (saturation genome editing; SGE). 55 of the 59 VUS had distinct status in the SGE study: 24 (43.6%) were pathogenic, and 31 (56.4%) were benign. Strong ethnicity-specific occurrences of pathogenic BRCA1/2 variants were identified in the Chinese population. Hence, the findings provide rationale and sequencing information for the implementation of BRCA1/2 variants tailored to the Chinese population into clinical risk assessment.

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