Characteristics of the sputum microbiome in COPD exacerbations and correlations between clinical indices

Journal of Translational Medicine

Jing Wang¹  Hongbing Zhang¹  Hongmei Zhao¹  Zhiwei Li¹  Linfan Su²  Rong Huang²  Yi Xiao²  Yixian Qiao²  Jinmei Luo² 

[1] Department of Pathophysiology, State Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Biology Institute of Basic Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, School of Basic Medicine, Peking Union Medical College, 100005, Beijing, China;Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, 100730, Beijing, China;

关键词: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease;    16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing;    Sputum microbiome;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12967-022-03278-x

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a prevalent, progressive respiratory disease, and acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD) can accelerate the deterioration of the disease. Increasing evidence suggests that airway bacterial dysbiosis is associated with AECOPD. However, the exact relationship between changes in the sputum microbiome during AECOPD and clinical indices remains unclear.MethodsIn this study, a total of 76 sputum samples were collected from patients with AECOPD (n = 28), stable COPD (n = 23), recovery (n = 15) and healthy controls (HCs; n = 10). The sputum microbiome profile was analysed by sequencing the V3‑V4 amplicon of the 16S rRNA (ribosomal RNA) gene.ResultsThe bacterial diversity (Shannon and Simpson’s index) was found to be significantly decreased in the AECOPD and recovery groups when compared to that in the stable COPD and HC groups. The most dominant phylum identified in the sputum samples of AECOPD patients was Proteobacteria, accounting for 30% of the microbiome. Compared to the stable COPD groups, the relative abundances of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were decreased, whereas those of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria were increased in AECOPD patients. Furthermore, discriminative bacteria, such as Haemophilus, were identified as being specific taxa in AECOPD patients. Functional analysis showed that genes involved in membrane transport and signal transduction metabolism were enriched in the AECOPD group. Importantly, the proportions of Veillonella were positively correlated with lung function, and Staphylococcus was positively correlated with inflammatory indices.ConclusionOur study revealed variations in the sputum microbiome of AECOPD (based on composition and function) in a Chinese cohort and highlighted its correlation to clinical indices. These results indicated that microbial dysbiosis may contribute to disease progression and provide microbial biomarkers for the diagnosis of AECOPD.

【 授权许可】

CC BY