Gut Pathogens (Mar 2024)

Constituents of stable commensal microbiota imply diverse colonic epithelial cell reactivity in patients with ulcerative colitis

  • Ruta Inciuraite,
  • Rolandas Gedgaudas,
  • Rokas Lukosevicius,
  • Deimante Tilinde,
  • Rima Ramonaite,
  • Alexander Link,
  • Neringa Kasetiene,
  • Mindaugas Malakauskas,
  • Gediminas Kiudelis,
  • Laimas Virginijus Jonaitis,
  • Juozas Kupcinskas,
  • Simonas Juzenas,
  • Jurgita Skieceviciene

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13099-024-00612-0
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 16, no. 1
pp. 1 – 10

Abstract

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Abstract Background Despite extensive research on microbiome alterations in ulcerative colitis (UC), the role of the constituent stable microbiota remains unclear. Results This study, employing 16S rRNA-gene sequencing, uncovers a persistent microbial imbalance in both active and quiescent UC patients compared to healthy controls. Using co-occurrence and differential abundance analysis, the study highlights microbial constituents, featuring Phocaeicola, Collinsella, Roseburia, Holdemanella, and Bacteroides, that are not affected during the course of UC. Co-cultivation experiments, utilizing commensal Escherichia coli and Phocaeicola vulgatus, were conducted with intestinal epithelial organoids derived from active UC patients and controls. These experiments reveal a tendency for a differential response in tight junction formation and maintenance in colonic epithelial cells, without inducing pathogen recognition and stress responses, offering further insights into the roles of these microorganisms in UC pathogenesis. These experiments also uncover high variation in patients’ response to the same bacteria, which indicate the need for more comprehensive, stratified analyses with an expanded sample size. Conclusion This study reveals that a substantial part of the gut microbiota remains stable throughout progression of UC. Functional experiments suggest that members of core microbiota – Escherichia coli and Phocaeicola vulgatus – potentially differentially regulate the expression of tight junction gene in the colonic epithelium of UC patients and healthy individuals.

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