Abstract
The intestinal microbiota plays an important role in the immune response against viral infections, modulating both innate and adaptive immune responses. The cytokine storm is associated with COVID-19 severity, and the patient’s immune status is influenced by the intestinal microbiota in a gut-lung bidirectional interaction. In this study, we evaluate the intestinal microbiota of Brazilian patients in different post-COVID-19 periods, and correlate this with clinical data and the antibiotic therapy used during the acute phase. DNA extracted from stool samples was sequenced and total anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and C-reactive protein were quantified. Compared with controls, there were significant differences in the microbiota diversity in post-COVID-19 patients, suggesting an intestinal dysbiosis even several months after acute disease resolution. Additionally, we detected some genera possibly associated with the post-COVID-19 dysbiosis, including Desulfovibrio , Haemophillus , Dialister , and Prevotella , in addition to decreased beneficial microbes, associated with antibiotic-induced dysbiosis, such as Bifidobacterium and Akkermansia . Therefore, our hypothesis is that dysbiosis and the indiscriminate use of antibiotics during the pandemic may be associated with post-COVID-19 clinical manifestations. In our study, 39% ( n = 58) of patients reported symptoms, including fatigue, dyspnea, myalgia, alopecia, anxiety, memory loss, and depression. These data suggest that microbiota modulation may represent a target for recovery from acute COVID-19 and a therapeutic approach for post-COVID-19 sequelae.
Keywords: antibiotics; dysbiosis; intestinal microbiota; post-COVID-19; sequelae.
【저자키워드】 Antibiotics, post-COVID-19, Dysbiosis, intestinal microbiota, Sequelae., 【초록키워드】 Cytokine storm, immune response, pandemic, Anxiety, Depression, fatigue, severity, COVID-19 severity, C-reactive protein, Antibiotics, viral infections, memory, clinical manifestations, DNA, Stool, microbiota, anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody, immune responses, Dyspnea, Patient, target, bidirectional, disease, Dysbiosis, Immune status, Interaction, Hypothesis, Therapeutic approach, alopecia, Prevotella, adaptive immune responses, stool samples, Post-COVID-19 patients, myalgia, acute disease, memory loss, Antibiotic therapy, significant difference, modulation, significant differences, Clinical data, acute phase, These data, acute COVID-19, microbes, reported symptoms, controls, intestinal, Bifidobacterium, Desulfovibrio, evaluate, sequenced, the patient, addition, quantified, modulating, use of antibiotics, with COVID-19, 【제목키워드】 detection, Resolution, Month,