Comparative characteristics of the nasal mucosa microflora at different level of allergic inflammation in the respiratory tract

Abstract

In the modern world, allergic respiratory diseases hold a huge place among all chronic diseases. The annual increase in the prevalence of allergic rhinitis and bronchial asthma among the global population makes relevant studies underlying their pathogenesis. Changes in the nasal mucosa alter its most important function protection from aggressive environmental factors allergens and pollutants. Inflammatory processes in the nasal cavity interfere with the normal mucosa functioning as a non-specific barrier, and facilitate their further penetration into the macroorganism. Objective of the study is to provide a comparative microbiological characteristic of the nasal mucosa of patients with respiratory allergies of various origin and level of respiratory tract damage. Patients with respiratory allergies aged 23 to 51 years old as well as sex- and age-matched apparently healthy subjects (n = 120) were examined. The study groups were as follows: atopic rhinosinusitis (AR, n = 28), atopic bronchial asthma (ABA, n = 28), polyposis rhinosinusitis (PRS, n = 68), and asthmatic triad (AT, n = 28). Diagnostics were carried out by an allergist-immunologist as well as an otorhinolaryngologist. Isolation of microorganisms was carried out by placing them on nutrient differential diagnostic media. Seeding was carried out by using the sector method. The culture media were incubated in a thermostat at 37C for 48 hours. Statistical processing was performed using the Statistica 7.0 software package. The study sample is described by calculating median as well as 25 and 75 percentiles. The normality distribution was checked by using the KolmogorovSmirnov method. The significance of differences between parameters of independent samples was assessed by using the nonparametric MannWhitney test. Dominance of opportunistic microorganisms in respiratory atopy (AR, ABA) relative to respiratory pseudoatopia (PRS, AT) was noted. The increased number of bacteria from the family Enterobacteriaceae and Enterococcus on the nasal mucosa characterizes dysbacteriosis, emphasizing the greatest importance of these families in the initiation of allergic pathology in the upper and lower respiratory tract during atopy. A distinctive intergroup feature is a high concentration of the Enterobacteriaceae family members in AR vs. PRS as well as microorganisms of the genus Enterococcus in ABA vs. AT. Thus, regardless of the cause of inflammation, allergic rhinosinusitis and bronchial asthma were featured with a pronounced dysbacteriosis due to rise in the opportunistic microflora on the nasal mucosa compared to the control group.

Keywords

• atopic rhinosinusitis
• polypous rhinosinusitis
• atopic bronchial asthma
• asthmatic triad
• microbiocenosis
• nasal mucous membrane