The gut microbiota contributes to maintaining human health and regulating immune responses. Severe COVID-19 illness is associated with a dysregulated pro-inflammatory immune response. The effect of SARS-CoV-2 on altering the gut microbiome and the relevance of the gut microbiome on COVID-19 severity needs to be clarified. In this prospective study, we analyzed the gut microbiome of 212 patients of a tertiary care hospital (117 patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 and 95 SARS-CoV-2 negative patients) using 16S rRNA gene sequencing of the V3-V4 region. Inflammatory markers and immune cells were quantified from blood. The gut microbiome in SARS-CoV-2 infected patients was characterized by a lower bacterial richness and distinct differences in the gut microbiome composition, including an enrichment of the phyla Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes and a decrease of Actinobacteria compared to SARS-CoV-2 negative patients. The relative abundance of several genera including Bifidobacterium , Streptococcus and Collinsella was lower in SARS-CoV-2 positive patients while the abundance of Bacteroides and Enterobacteriaceae was increased. Higher pro-inflammatory blood markers and a lower CD8 + T cell number characterized patients with severe COVID-19 illness. The gut microbiome of patients with severe/critical COVID-19 exhibited a lower abundance of butyrate-producing genera Faecalibacterium and Roseburia and a reduction in the connectivity of a distinct network of anti-inflammatory genera that was observed in patients with mild COVID-19 illness and in SARS-CoV-2 negative patients. Dysbiosis of the gut microbiome associated with a pro-inflammatory signature may contribute to the hyperinflammatory immune response characterizing severe COVID-19 illness.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, severity, Microbiome, intestinal microbiota, 【초록키워드】 immune response, Anti-inflammatory, hospital, Prospective Study, Sequencing, COVID-19 severity, CD8, T cell, Health, immune responses, Patient, gut microbiota, Care, Dysbiosis, patients, Blood, Bacterial, marker, Immune cell, Gut, Enterobacteriaceae, COVID-19 illness, 16S rRNA gene, severe COVID-19 illness, mild COVID-19 illness, Proteobacteria, gut microbiome composition, Streptococcus, pro-inflammatory, Hyperinflammatory, decrease, Bifidobacterium, Faecalibacterium, analyzed, exhibited, characterized, contribute, reduction in, dysregulated, quantified, Actinobacteria, Bacteroide, Bacteroidete, infected with SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-2 infected patient, SARS-CoV-2 positive patient, was increased, 【제목키워드】 network, connectivity, Associate,