Features of the bronchial bacterial microbiome associated with atopy, asthma and responsiveness to inhaled corticosteroid treatment

Publication date: Available online 10 November 2016
Source:Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Author(s): Juliana Durack, Susan V. Lynch, Snehal Nariya, Nirav R. Bhakta, Avraham Beigelman, Mario Castro, Anne-Marie Dyer, Elliot Israel, Monica Kraft, Richard J. Martin, David T. Mauger, Sharon R. Rosenberg, Tonya Sharp-King, Steven R. White, Prescott G. Woodruff, Pedro C. Avila, Loren C. Denlinger, Fernando Holguin, Stephen C. Lazarus, Njira Lugogo, Wendy C. Moore, Stephen P. Peters, Loretta Que, Lewis J. Smith, Christine A. Sorkness, Michael Wechsler, Sally E. Wenzel, Homer A. Boushey, Yvonne J. Huang
BackgroundCompositional differences in bronchial bacterial microbiota have been associated with asthma, but it remains unclear whether the findings are attributable to asthma, to aeroallergen sensitization or to inhaled corticosteroid treatment.ObjectivesTo compare the bronchial bacterial microbiota in adults with steroid-naive atopic asthma (AA), with atopy but no asthma (ANA), and non-atopic healthy subjects (HC), and determine relationships of bronchial microbiota to phenotypic features of asthma.MethodsBacterial communities in protected bronchial brushings from 42 AA, 21 ANA, and 21 HC subjects were profiled by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Bacterial composition and community-level functions inferred from sequence profiles were analyzed for between-group differences. Associations with clinical and inflammatory variables were examined, including markers of type 2-related inflammation and change in airway hyper-responsiveness following six weeks of fluticasone treatment.ResultsThe bronchial microbiome differed significantly among the three groups. Asthmatic subjects were uniquely enriched in members of the Haemophilus, Neisseria, Fusobacterium, Porphyromonas and Sphingomonodaceae, and depleted in members of the Mogibacteriaceae and Lactobacillales. Asthma-associated differences in predicted bacterial functions included involvement of amino acid and short-chain fatty acid metabolism pathways. Subjects with type 2-high asthma harbored significantly lower bronchial bacterial burden. Distinct changes in specific microbiota members were seen following fluticasone treatment. Steroid-responsiveness was linked to differences in baseline compositional and functional features of the bacterial microbiome.ConclusionEven in mild steroid-naive asthma subjects, differences in the bronchial microbiome are associated with immunologic and clinical features of the disease. The specific differences identified suggest possible microbiome targets for future approaches to asthma treatment or prevention.

Teaser

Mild atopic asthma is associated with distinct differences in the composition and inferred functional capacities of bronchial bacterial microbiota, which further associate with type 2-low airway inflammation and with responsiveness to inhaled corticosteroid treatment.


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