UPLC-Q-TOF/MS-based plasma metabolome to identify biomarkers and time of injury in traumatic brain injured rats

HPV-associated cervicovaginal microbiome and host metabolome characteristics

BACKGROUND

Cervicovaginal microbiome plays an important role in the persistence of HPV infection and subsequent disease development. However, cervicovaginal microbiota varied cross populations with different habits and regions. Identification of population-specific biomarkers from cervicovaginal microbiota and host metabolome axis may support early detection or surveillance of HPV-induced cervical disease at all sites. Therefore, in the present study, to identify HPV-specific biomarkers, cervicovaginal secretion and serum samples from HPV-infected patients (HPV group, n = 25) and normal controls (normal group, n = 17) in Xichang, China were collected for microbiome (16S rRNA gene sequencing) and metabolome (UHPLC-MS/MS) analysis, respectively.

RESULTS

The results showed that key altered metabolites of 9,10-DiHOME, α-linolenic acid, ethylparaben, glycocholic acid, pipecolic acid, and 9,12,13-trihydroxy-10(E),15(Z)-octadecadienoic acid, correlating with Sneathia (Sneathia_amnii), Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus_iners), Atopobium, Mycoplasma, and Gardnerella, may be potential biomarkers of HPV infection.

CONCLUSION

The results of current study would help to reveal the association of changes in cervicovaginal microbiota and serum metabolome with HPV infections.

The alteration of serum bile acid profile among traumatic brain injury patients: a small-scale prospective study

Traumatic brain injury is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. With the development of bile acids as a potential treatment, to identify the influence of traumatic brain injury on bile acid metabolism shows growing importance. This present study did a preliminary exploration of the bile acid profile alteration among traumatic brain injury patients. In total, 14 patients and 7 healthy volunteers were enrolled. The bile acid profile of the blood samples were detected by an Ultra-performance Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometer/Mass Spectrometer system. It was found that 6 bile acids were statistically decreased in traumatic brain injury patients comparing with healthy volunteers: glycocholic acid (median level 44.4 ng/ml vs 98.7 ng/ml, p = 0.003), taurocholic acid (median level 10.9 ng/ml vs 19.5 ng/ml, p = 0.006), glycoursodeoxycholic acid (median level 17.4 ng/ml vs 71.4 ng/ml, p = 0.001), ursodeoxycholic acid (median level <1 ng/ml vs 32.4 ng/ml, p = 0.002), taurochenodeoxycholic acid (median level <1 ng/ml vs 53.6 ng/ml, p = 0.003) and glycochenodeoxycholic acid (GCDCA, median level 160 ng/ml vs 364 ng/ml, p<0.001). In conclusion, traumatic brain injury events are able to induce bile acid metabolism alteration in plasma and might cause reduction in glycocholic, taurocholic, glycoursodeoxycholic, ursodeoxycholic, taurochenodeoxycholic and glycochenodeoxycholic acid levels.

Gut Microbiota Dysbiosis after Traumatic Brain Injury Contributes to Persistent Microglial Activation Associated with Upregulated Lyz2 and Shifted Tryptophan Metabolic Phenotype

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common cause of disability and mortality, affecting millions of people every year. The neuroinflammation and immune response post-TBI initially have neuroprotective and reparative effects, but prolonged neuroinflammation leads to secondary injury and increases the risk of chronic neurodegenerative diseases. Persistent microglial activation plays a critical role in chronic neuroinflammation post-TBI. Given the bidirectional communication along the brain-gut axis, it is plausible to suppose that gut microbiota dysbiosis post-TBI influences microglial activation. In the present study, hippocampal microglial activation was observed at 7 days and 28 days post-TBI. However, in TBI mice with a depletion of gut microbiota, microglia were activated at 7 days post-TBI, but not at 28 days post-TBI, indicating that gut microbiota contributes to the long-term activation of microglia post-TBI. In addition, in conventional mice colonized by the gut microbiota of TBI mice using fecal microbiota transplant (FMT), microglial activation was observed at 28 days post-TBI, but not at 7 days post-TBI, supporting the role of gut microbiota dysbiosis in persistent microglial activation post-TBI. The RNA sequencing of the hippocampus identified a microglial activation gene, Lyz2, which kept upregulation post-TBI. This persistent upregulation was inhibited by oral antibiotics and partly induced by FMT. 16s rRNA gene sequencing showed that the composition and function of gut microbiota shifted over time post-TBI with progressive dysbiosis, and untargeted metabolomics profiling revealed that the tryptophan metabolic phenotype was differently reshaped at 7 days and 28 days post-TBI, which may play a role in the persistent upregulation of Lyz2 and the activation of microglia. This study implicates that gut microbiota and Lyz2 are potential targets for the development of novel strategies to address persistent microglial activation and chronic neuroinflammation post-TBI, and further investigations are warranted to elucidate the specific mechanism.