Alterations of the gut microbiota associated with the occurrence and progression of viral hepatitis

Abstract

BackgroundGut microbiota is the largest population of microorganisms and is closely related to health. Many studies have explored changes in gut microbiota in viral hepatitis. However, the correlation between gut microbiota and the occurrence and progression of viral hepatitis has not been fully clarified.MethodsPubMed and BioProject databases were searched for studies about viral hepatitis disease and 16S rRNA gene sequencing of gut microbiota up to January 2023. With bioinformatics analyses, we explored changes in microbial diversity of viral hepatitis, screened out crucial bacteria and microbial functions related to viral hepatitis, and identified the potential microbial markers for predicting risks for the occurrence and progression of viral hepatitis based on ROC analysis.ResultsOf the 1389 records identified, 13 studies met the inclusion criteria, with 950 individuals including 656 patient samples (HBV, n = 546; HCV, n = 86; HEV, n = 24) and 294 healthy controls. Gut microbial diversity is significantly decreased as the infection and progression of viral hepatitis. Alpha diversity and microbiota including Butyricimonas, Escherichia-Shigella, Lactobacillus, and Veillonella were identified as the potential microbial markers for predicting the risk of development of viral hepatitis (AUC>0.7). Microbial functions including tryptophan metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis, and lipid metabolism related to the microbial community increased significantly as the development of viral hepatitis.ConclusionsThis study demonstrated comprehensively the gut microbiota characteristics in viral hepatitis, screened out crucial microbial functions related to viral hepatitis, and identified the potential microbial markers for predicting the risk of viral hepatitis.

Isolation of mucosa-associated microbiota dysbiosis in the ascending colon in hepatitis C virus post-sustained virologic response cirrhotic patients

“…Intestinal bacteria produce SCFAs, which perform various biological functions such as homeostasis of the gut–liver axis by maintaining intestinal permeability and regulating immunity, lipogenesis, and gluconeogenesis ( Jin et al., 2019 ; Cao et al., 2023 ). HCV infection has been reported to decreases the fecal bacterial composition of Blautia ( Chuaypen et al., 2023 ), Alistipes ( Sultan et al., 2021 ), Dorea ( Chuaypen et al., 2023 ; Yang et al., 2023 ), and Pseudoflavonifractor ( Heidrich et al., 2018 ). Regarding the microbial composition of feces, Roseburia decreases in patients with cirrhosis ( Chen et al., 2011 ) and Agathobaculum decreases in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease ( Ahn et al., 2019 ).…”

Updated Insights into Probiotics and Hepatobiliary Diseases

“…Moreover, HEV is mainly transmitted via a fecal–oral route, such as contaminated water and raw infected meat, while parenteral and perinatal transmission are also implicated in HEV incidence [ 69 ]. The findings show that gut microbiota can be altered depending on the progression of viral hepatitis, and the abundance of some microbiota, including Butyricimonas , Escherichia-Shigella , Lactobacillus , and Veillonella , was significantly changed in patients with viral hepatitis, which could be considered markers for the risk of having viral hepatitis [ 70 , 71 ]. Treatment targeting gut microbiota in viral hepatitis, such as probiotics and FMT, has also achieved promising outcomes recently.…”

Research Progress on the Mechanism of Gut Microbiota in Liver Diseases

“…The gut microbiota is associated with the pathogenesis of liver disease caused by chronic HBV infection. Yang et al [10] showed that the onset and progression of viral hepatitis are associated with gut microbial diversity. The present study also found decreased gut alpha diversity and increased abundance of genera including Aeromonas spp., butyric acidophilus, Shigella spp., Legionella spp.…”