By Amy Denney
One way to prolong the lives of organ transplant recipients could be addressing poor gut microbial signatures that new research shows are associated with their long-term survival.
A study published July 9 in the BMJ journal, Gut noted specific patterns in the gut microbiome among those who died after kidney, liver, heart, and lung transplants. Microbial signatures included the diversity of microbes, richness of antibiotic-resistant genes, how the signatures compared to controls, and virulence factors, which are bacteria-associated molecules that can infect cells and cause disease.
Those with “unhealthy” gut microbial signature patterns experienced a higher risk of all-cause death, though most patterns were associated with infection and cancer.
“Our results support emerging evidence showing that gut dysbiosis is associated with long-term survival, indicating that gut microbiome targeting therapies might improve patient outcomes, although causal links should be identified first,” the study concluded.
Authors noted that the findings also have implications beyond the organ transplant community. Studies have shown microbial imbalances, called dysbiosis, are associated with diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, autism, and many others. This study is among few that have compared gut microbiome data to long-term survival.
A 2022 study in Science Translational Medicine noted that those with end-stage liver or kidney disease before and after organ transplantation had similar findings related to the microbiome. It also noted that immunosuppressive drugs needed after transplant were associated with dysbiosis.
Because dysbiosis is higher in those who’ve had organ transplants, it’s easier to pinpoint patterns related to the microbiome and death, according to a BMJ news release about the study.
Researchers examined the microbial profiles of 1,337 organ transplant recipients (766 kidney, 334 liver, 170 lung, and 67 heart) and compared them with 8,208 gut microbiome profiles from among the same northern Netherlands geographical area.
Nearly 60 percent of the transplant recipients were men, and their average age was 57 with an average elapsed time of 7.5 years from their transplants.
The study followed the subjects for 6.5 years, during which time 162 organ recipients died. The top causes of death were infection, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. A key finding showed that the more their gut microbiome patterns diverged from those in the control group, the more likely they were to die no matter the organ being transplanted.
The researchers identified 23 bacterial species that had some association with risk of death.
According to the news release:
- “An abundance of four Clostridium species was associated with death from all causes and specifically infection,” as well as Hangatella, Hathewayi and Veillonella parvula.
- High numbers of Ruminococcus gnavus, as well as low numbers of Germigger, formicilis, Firmicutes bacterium CAG 83, Eubacterium hallii, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzi [sic] were associated with death from all causes and with cancer.
The last four species produce butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid that plays a role in fighting inflammation and maintaining gut barrier integrity.
Discover more from USNN World News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.