High serum phosphate levels in chronic kidney disease (CKD) are linked to adverse health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, kidney disease progression, and all-cause mortality. This study is aimed to find out which microorganisms or microbial functions have a significant impact on higher calcium-phosphorus product (Ca x P) after they undergo hemodialysis (HD) treatment. Feces samples from 30 healthy controls, 15 dialysis patients with controlled Ca xP (HD), and 16 dialysis patients with higher Ca xP (HDHCP) were collected to perform in 16S amplicon sequencing. We found gut microbial composition was significantly different between hemodialysis patients and healthy controls. Three phyla including Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria were significantly enriched in hemodialysis patients. Although only one genus, Lachnospiraceae_FCS020_group, was significantly increased in higher Ca xP group, there were four metabolic pathways predicted by PICRUSt significantly increased in higher Ca xP group and associated with causing VC, including the pentose phosphate pathway, steroid biosynthesis, terpenoid backbone biosynthesis, and fatty acid elongation pathway. Characterizing dysbiosis of gut microbiome played the important role in hemodialysis patients.

Summary Earthquakes occur thousands of times every day around the world. They are naturally destructive seismic events and often result in soil liquefaction. Soil microbiota plays a vital role in soil environments and may serve as an effective indicator to assess soil liquefaction after earthquakes. This study aimed to detect the microbial community abundance and composition in soil samples of different depths. Soil samples were collected in Southern Taiwan immediately after the 2010 earthquake. Their physical characteristics were determined, and their microbial communities were analyzed through 16S amplicon sequencing. The results revealed that Nitrospirae phylum dominated in the liquefied layer. In particular, the genus HB118 , dominant in the liquefied layer, was not detected at other soil depths or in the expelled liquefied soil. This finding not only provides valuable insights into changes in microbial community composition at different soil depths after earthquakes but also suggests a useful indicator for monitoring liquefied soil.