<i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota
Pneumonia caused by <i>Pneumocystis jirovecii</i> infection (PCP) is a potentially life-threatening illness, particularly affecting the immunocompromised. The past two decades have shown an increase in PCP incidence; however, the underlying factors that promote disease severity and fatal...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-01-01
|
| Series: | Pathogens |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/14/1/82 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832587766076014592 |
|---|---|
| author | Valentina Del Prete Antonia Piazzesi Matteo Scanu Francesca Toto Stefania Pane Federica Berrilli Giovangiacinto Paterno Lorenza Putignani David di Cave |
| author_facet | Valentina Del Prete Antonia Piazzesi Matteo Scanu Francesca Toto Stefania Pane Federica Berrilli Giovangiacinto Paterno Lorenza Putignani David di Cave |
| author_sort | Valentina Del Prete |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Pneumonia caused by <i>Pneumocystis jirovecii</i> infection (PCP) is a potentially life-threatening illness, particularly affecting the immunocompromised. The past two decades have shown an increase in PCP incidence; however, the underlying factors that promote disease severity and fatality have yet to be fully elucidated. Recent evidence suggests that the microbiota of the respiratory tract may play a role in stimulating or repressing pulmonary inflammation, as well as the progression of both bacterial and viral pneumonia. Here, we employed 16S rRNA metataxonomic sequencing to profile the respiratory microbiota of patients with mild-moderate and severe PCP. Our results show that the upper and lower airways of PCP patients have bacterial profiles which have been associated with a pro-inflammatory response. Furthermore, we find that severe PCP is associated with lower bacterial diversity and an increase in <i>Prevotella</i> and a decrease in <i>Neisseria</i>. Functionally, severe PCP was associated with a decrease in metabolic pathways of molecules with anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing an association of PCP severity with shifts in the respiratory microbiome and may provide some insight into which patients are more susceptible to the more severe manifestations of the disease. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-61e17fe5861141cf9a94ed710cb56660 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2076-0817 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pathogens |
| spelling | doaj-art-61e17fe5861141cf9a94ed710cb566602025-01-24T13:44:50ZengMDPI AGPathogens2076-08172025-01-011418210.3390/pathogens14010082<i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory MicrobiotaValentina Del Prete0Antonia Piazzesi1Matteo Scanu2Francesca Toto3Stefania Pane4Federica Berrilli5Giovangiacinto Paterno6Lorenza Putignani7David di Cave8Department of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, ItalyManagement and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Unit of Microbiome, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, ItalyManagement and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Unit of Microbiome, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, ItalyManagement and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Unit of Microbiome, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, ItalyUnit of Microbiology and Diagnostic Immunology, Unit of Microbiomics, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, ItalyHematology, Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, ItalyUnit of Microbiology and Diagnostic Immunology, Unit of Microbiomics and Management and Diagnostic Innovations & Clinical Pathways Research Area, Unit of Microbiome, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, IRCCS, 00144 Rome, ItalyDepartment of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, ItalyPneumonia caused by <i>Pneumocystis jirovecii</i> infection (PCP) is a potentially life-threatening illness, particularly affecting the immunocompromised. The past two decades have shown an increase in PCP incidence; however, the underlying factors that promote disease severity and fatality have yet to be fully elucidated. Recent evidence suggests that the microbiota of the respiratory tract may play a role in stimulating or repressing pulmonary inflammation, as well as the progression of both bacterial and viral pneumonia. Here, we employed 16S rRNA metataxonomic sequencing to profile the respiratory microbiota of patients with mild-moderate and severe PCP. Our results show that the upper and lower airways of PCP patients have bacterial profiles which have been associated with a pro-inflammatory response. Furthermore, we find that severe PCP is associated with lower bacterial diversity and an increase in <i>Prevotella</i> and a decrease in <i>Neisseria</i>. Functionally, severe PCP was associated with a decrease in metabolic pathways of molecules with anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing an association of PCP severity with shifts in the respiratory microbiome and may provide some insight into which patients are more susceptible to the more severe manifestations of the disease.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/14/1/82respiratory microbiota<i>Pneumocystis jirocevii</i><i>Pneumocystis</i> pneumoniametataxonomy sequencinglung |
| spellingShingle | Valentina Del Prete Antonia Piazzesi Matteo Scanu Francesca Toto Stefania Pane Federica Berrilli Giovangiacinto Paterno Lorenza Putignani David di Cave <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota Pathogens respiratory microbiota <i>Pneumocystis jirocevii</i> <i>Pneumocystis</i> pneumonia metataxonomy sequencing lung |
| title | <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota |
| title_full | <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota |
| title_fullStr | <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota |
| title_full_unstemmed | <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota |
| title_short | <i>Pneumocystis</i> Pneumonia Severity Is Associated with Taxonomic Shifts in the Respiratory Microbiota |
| title_sort | i pneumocystis i pneumonia severity is associated with taxonomic shifts in the respiratory microbiota |
| topic | respiratory microbiota <i>Pneumocystis jirocevii</i> <i>Pneumocystis</i> pneumonia metataxonomy sequencing lung |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/14/1/82 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT valentinadelprete ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT antoniapiazzesi ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT matteoscanu ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT francescatoto ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT stefaniapane ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT federicaberrilli ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT giovangiacintopaterno ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT lorenzaputignani ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota AT daviddicave ipneumocystisipneumoniaseverityisassociatedwithtaxonomicshiftsintherespiratorymicrobiota |