Stool Microbiota Diversity Analysis of <i>Blastocystis</i>-Positive and <i>Blastocystis</i>-Negative Individuals

• Published in: Microorganisms
• Main Authors: Christen Rune Stensvold, Brede Aksdal Sørland, Rebecca P. K. D. Berg, Lee O’Brien Andersen, Mark van der Giezen, Joanna L. Bowtell, Ayman A. El-Badry, Salem Belkessa, Özgür Kurt, Henrik Vedel Nielsen
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2022-01-01
• Subjects: gut; parasite; <i>Blastocystis</i>; microbiome; microbiota; protist
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/10/2/326

<i>Blastocystis</i> is a unicellular eukaryote found in the gastrointestinal tract of both human and other animal hosts. The clinical significance of colonic <i>Blastocystis</i> colonization remains obscure. In this study, we used metabarcoding and bioinformatics analyses to identify differences in stool microbiota diversity between <i>Blastocystis</i>-positive and <i>Blastocystis</i>-negative individuals (n = 1285). Alpha diversity was significantly higher in <i>Blastocystis</i> carriers. At phylum level, Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were enriched in carriers, while Proteobacteria were enriched in non-carriers. The genera <i>Prevotella</i>, <i>Faecalibacterium</i>, <i>Flavonifracter</i>, <i>Clostridium</i>, <i>Succinivibrio</i>, and <i>Oscillibacter</i> were enriched in carriers, whereas <i>Escherichia</i>, <i>Bacteroides</i>, <i>Klebsiella</i>, and <i>Pseudomonas</i> were enriched in non-carriers. No difference in beta diversity was observed. Individuals with <i>Blastocystis</i>-positive stools appear to have gut microbiomes associated with eubiosis unlike those with <i>Blastocystis</i>-negative stools, whose gut microbiomes are similar to those associated with dysbiosis. The role of <i>Blastocystis</i> as an indicator organism and potential modulator of the gut microbiota warrants further scrutiny.