Microbiota That Affect Risk for Shigellosis in Children in Low-Income Countries

• Main Authors: Brianna Lindsay, Joe Oundo, M. Anowar Hossain, Martin Antonio, Boubou Tamboura, Alan W. Walker, Joseph N. Paulson, Julian Parkhill, Richard Omore, Abu S.G. Faruque, Suman Kumar Das, Usman N. Ikumapayi, Mitchell Adeyemi, Doh Sanogo, Debasish Saha, Samba Sow, Tamer H. Farag, Dilruba Nasrin, Shan Li, Sandra Panchalingam, Myron M. Levine, Karen Kotloff, Laurence S. Magder, Laura Hungerford, Halvor Sommerfelt, Mihai Pop, James P. Nataro, O. Colin Stine
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2015-02-01
• Series: Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Subjects: shigellosis; Shigella; bacteria; polymicrobial infection; Escherichia coli; enteroinvasive E. coli
• Online Access: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/21/2/14-0795_article

Pathogens in the gastrointestinal tract exist within a vast population of microbes. We examined associations between pathogens and composition of gut microbiota as they relate to Shigella spp./enteroinvasive Escherichia coli infection. We analyzed 3,035 stool specimens (1,735 nondiarrheal and 1,300 moderate-to-severe diarrheal) from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study for 9 enteropathogens. Diarrheal specimens had a higher number of enteropathogens (diarrheal mean 1.4, nondiarrheal mean 0.95; p<0.0001). Rotavirus showed a negative association with Shigella spp. in cases of diarrhea (odds ratio 0.31, 95% CI 0.17–0.55) and had a large combined effect on moderate-to-severe diarrhea (odds ratio 29, 95% CI 3.8–220). In 4 Lactobacillus taxa identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, the association between pathogen and disease was decreased, which is consistent with the possibility that Lactobacillus spp. are protective against Shigella spp.–induced diarrhea. Bacterial diversity of gut microbiota was associated with diarrhea status, not high levels of the Shigella spp. ipaH gene.