Promising Intestinal Microbiota Associated with Clinical Characteristics of COPD Through Integrated Bioinformatics Analysis

Abstract

Tianwen Lai,1,* Chaole Luo,1,* Yalian Yuan,2,* Jia Fang,1,* Yun Wang,1 Xiantong Tang,1 Lihuan Ouyang,1 Keyan Lin,1 Bin Wu,2 Weimin Yao,1 Ruina Huang1 1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the First Dongguan Affiliated Hospital, Guangdong Medical University, Dongguan, 523121, People’s Republic of China; 2Respiratory Diseases Research Institute, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, 524001, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Ruina Huang; Weimin Yao, Email [email protected]; [email protected]: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), an incurable chronic respiratory disease, has become a major public health problem. The relationship between the composition of intestinal microbiota and the important clinical factors affecting COPD remains unclear. This study aimed to identify specific intestinal microbiota with high clinical diagnostic value for COPD.Methods: The fecal microbiota of patients with COPD and healthy individuals were analyzed by 16S rDNA sequencing. Random forest classification was performed to analyze the different intestinal microbiota. Spearman correlation was conducted to analyze the correlation between different intestinal microbiota and clinical characteristics. A microbiota-disease network diagram was constructed using the gut MDisorder database to identify the possible pathogenesis of intestinal microorganisms affecting COPD, screen for potential treatment, and guide future research.Results: No significant difference in biodiversity was shown between the two groups but significant differences in microbial community structure. Fifteen genera of bacteria with large abundance differences were identified, including Bacteroides, Prevotella, Lachnospira, and Parabacteroides. Among them, the relative abundance of Lachnospira and Coprococcus was negatively related to the smoking index and positively related to lung function results. By contrast, the relative abundance of Parabacteroides was positively correlated with the smoking index and negatively correlated with lung function findings. Random forest classification showed that Lachnospira was the genus most capable of distinguishing between patients with COPD and healthy individuals suggesting it may be a potential biomarker of COPD. A Lachnospira disease network diagram suggested that Lachnospira decreased in some diseases, such as asthma, diabetes mellitus, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and increased in other diseases, such as irritable bowel syndrome, hypertension, and bovine lichen.Conclusion: The dominant intestinal microbiota with significant differences is related to the clinical characteristics of COPD, and the Lachnospira has the potential value to identify COPD.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, intestinal microbiota, 16S rDNA sequencing, Lachnospira, gut-lung axis

Keywords

• chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• intestinal microbiota
• 16s rdna sequencing
• lachnospira
• gut-lung axis