Comparative Gut Microbiome Differences between High and Low Aortic Arch Calcification Score in Patients with Chronic Diseases

Abstract

Gut dysbiosis can induce chronic inflammation and contribute to atherosclerosis and vascular calcification. The aortic arch calcification (AoAC) score is a simple, noninvasive, and semiquantitative assessment tool to evaluate vascular calcification on chest radiographs. Few studies have discussed the relationship between gut microbiota and AoAC. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the microbiota composition between patients with chronic diseases and high or low AoAC scores. A total of 186 patients (118 males and 68 females) with chronic diseases, including diabetes mellitus (80.6%), hypertension (75.3%), and chronic kidney disease (48.9%), were enrolled. Gut microbiota in fecal samples were analyzed by sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, and differences in microbial function were examined. The patients were divided into three groups according to AoAC score, including 103 patients in the low AoAC group (AoAC ≤ 3), 40 patients in the medium AoAC group (3 < AoAC ≤ 6), and 43 patients in the high AoAC group (AoAC > 6). Compared to the low AoAC group, the high AoAC group had a significantly lower microbial species diversity (Chao1 index and Shannon index) and increased microbial dysbiosis index. Beta diversity showed that the microbial community composition was significantly different among the three groups (p = 0.041, weighted UniFrac PCoA). A distinct microbial community structure was found in the patients with a low AoAC, with an increased abundance at the genus level of Agathobacter, Eubacterium coprostanoligenes group, Ruminococcaceae UCG-002, Barnesiella, Butyricimonas, Oscillibacter, Ruminococcaceae DTU089, and Oxalobacter. In addition, there was an increased relative abundance of class Bacilli in the high AoAC group. Our findings support the association between gut dysbiosis and the severity of AoAC in patients with chronic diseases.

Association of dietary live microbe intake with abdominal aortic calcification in US adults: a cross-sectional study of NHANES 2013–2014

“…in α-diversity along with a heightened prevalence of Clostridia species; those with lower AoAC scores exhibited a more favorable microbial profile, characterized by a higher abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Agathobacter (31). In another study involving 73 hemodialysis patients, notable distinctions in gut flora were discerned across various VC groups (32).…”

“…Previous studies have observed changes in the gut flora of VC patients. An observational study investigated differences in gut flora composition among chronic disease patients with varying degrees of aortic arch calcification (AoAC) (31). Individuals with the highest AoAC scores displayed a significant decrease The results of subgroup analysis were adjusted for all covariates except the effect modifier.…”

Alternations in gut microbiota and host transcriptome of patients with coronary artery disease

“…[Eubacterium]_hallii_grou, Collinsella, Colidextribacter, NK4A214_group, Negativibacillus, Faecalitalea, Family_XIII_AD3011_group, Peptoniphilus, Fructilactobacillus, and Solobacterium were enriched in CAD patients. Among them, eight of these identi ed microbes, including Blautia, Fusicatenibacter, Monoglobus, Eubacterium, UCG-002, UCG-005, Collinsella, and NK4A214_group, have been reported to be associated with CAD, acute myocardial infarction, or CAD complicated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in previous studies [29,[37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44]. Notably, 10 microbes, including Sutterella, Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group, [Eubacterium]_hallii_grou, Colidextribacter, Negativibacillus, Faecalitalea, Family_XIII_AD3011_group, Peptoniphilus, Fructilactobacillus, and Solobacterium, were newly identi ed in the current investigation.…”

Effects of Different Carbohydrate Content Diet on Gut Microbiota and Aortic Calcification in Diabetic Mice

“…Conversely, the high AoAC group exhibited an increased relative abundance of the class Bacilli. 14 Additionally, another study identified the enrichment of Acinetobacter in the blood as a potential risk factor for vascular calcification in chronic kidney disease. 15 Therefore, it is hypothesized that gut microbiota may influence the progression of T2DM and vascular calcification, particularly through dietary interventions involving different carbohydrate compositions.…”