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Journal of Translational Medicine Feb 2024The relationship between the gut mycobiome and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) remains largely unexplored.
BACKGROUND
The relationship between the gut mycobiome and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) remains largely unexplored.
METHODS
In this study, we compared the gut fungal populations of 223 ESRD patients and 69 healthy controls (HCs) based on shotgun metagenomic sequencing data, and analyzed their associations with host serum and fecal metabolites.
RESULTS
Our findings revealed that ESRD patients had a higher diversity in the gut mycobiome compared to HCs. Dysbiosis of the gut mycobiome in ESRD patients was characterized by a decrease of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and an increase in various opportunistic pathogens, such as Aspergillus fumigatus, Cladophialophora immunda, Exophiala spinifera, Hortaea werneckii, Trichophyton rubrum, and others. Through multi-omics analysis, we observed a substantial contribution of the gut mycobiome to host serum and fecal metabolomes. The opportunistic pathogens enriched in ESRD patients were frequently and positively correlated with the levels of creatinine, homocysteine, and phenylacetylglycine in the serum. The populations of Saccharomyces, including the HC-enriched Saccharomyces cerevisiae, were frequently and negatively correlated with the levels of various toxic metabolites in the feces.
CONCLUSIONS
Our results provided a comprehensive understanding of the associations between the gut mycobiome and the development of ESRD, which had important implications for guiding future therapeutic studies in this field.
Topics: Humans; Mycobiome; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Feces; Metabolome; Kidney Failure, Chronic
PubMed: 38403655
DOI: 10.1186/s12967-024-05004-1 -
Nature Reviews. Microbiology Dec 2022
Topics: Humans; Mycobiome; Fungi; Microbiota; Neoplasms
PubMed: 36241720
DOI: 10.1038/s41579-022-00816-8 -
Mycologia 2022Fires occur in most terrestrial ecosystems where they drive changes in the traits, composition, and diversity of fungal communities. Fires range from rare,... (Review)
Review
Fires occur in most terrestrial ecosystems where they drive changes in the traits, composition, and diversity of fungal communities. Fires range from rare, stand-replacing wildfires to frequent, prescribed fires used to mimic natural fire regimes. Fire regime factors, including burn severity, fire intensity, and timing, vary widely and likely determine how fungi respond to fires. Despite the importance of fungi to post-fire plant communities and ecosystem functioning, attempts to identify common fungal responses and their major drivers are lacking. This synthesis addresses this knowledge gap and ranges from fire adaptations of specific fungi to succession and assembly fungal communities as they respond to spatially heterogenous burning within the landscape. Fires impact fungi directly and indirectly through their effects on fungal survival, substrate and habitat modifications, changes in environmental conditions, and/or physiological responses of the hosts with which fungi interact. Some specific pyrophilous, or "fire-loving," fungi often appear after fire. Our synthesis explores whether such taxa can be considered cosmopolitan, and whether they are truly fire-adapted or simply opportunists adapted to rapidly occupy substrates and habitats made available by fires. We also discuss the possible inoculum sources of post-fire fungi and explore existing conceptual models and ecological frameworks that may be useful in generalizing fungal fire responses. We conclude with identifying research gaps and areas that may best transform the current knowledge and understanding of fungal responses to fire.
Topics: Ecosystem; Fires; Mycobiome; Plants; Wildfires
PubMed: 35344467
DOI: 10.1080/00275514.2021.2024422 -
Mucosal Immunology Apr 2022Fungi are important yet understudied contributors to the microbial communities of the gastrointestinal tract. Starting at birth, the intestinal mycobiome undergoes a... (Review)
Review
Fungi are important yet understudied contributors to the microbial communities of the gastrointestinal tract. Starting at birth, the intestinal mycobiome undergoes a period of dynamic maturation under the influence of microbial, host, and extrinsic influences, with profound functional implications for immune development in early life, and regulation of immune homeostasis throughout life. Candida albicans serves as a model organism for understanding the cross-talk between fungal colonization dynamics and immunity, and exemplifies unique mechanisms of fungal-immune interactions, including fungal dimorphism, though our understanding of other intestinal fungi is growing. Given the prominent role of the gut mycobiome in promoting immune homeostasis, emerging evidence points to fungal dysbiosis as an influential contributor to immune dysregulation in a variety of inflammatory and infectious diseases. Here we review current knowledge on the factors that govern host-fungi interactions in the intestinal tract and immunological outcomes in both mucosal and systemic compartments.
Topics: Candida albicans; Dysbiosis; Fungi; Gastrointestinal Tract; Humans; Immunity, Mucosal; Infant, Newborn; Microbiota; Mycobiome
PubMed: 35474360
DOI: 10.1038/s41385-022-00515-w -
The New Phytologist Nov 2020That arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi covary with plant communities is clear, and many papers report nonrandom associations between symbiotic partners. However, these... (Review)
Review
That arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi covary with plant communities is clear, and many papers report nonrandom associations between symbiotic partners. However, these studies do not test the causal relationship, or 'codependency', whereby the composition of one guild affects the composition of the other. Here we outline underlying requirements for codependency, compare important drivers for both plant and AM fungal communities, and assess how host preference - a pre-requisite for codependency - changes across spatiotemporal scales and taxonomic resolution for both plants and AM fungi. We find few examples in the literature designed to test for codependency and those that do have been conducted within plots or mesocosms. Also, while plants and AM fungi respond similarly to coarse environmental filters, most variation remains unexplained, with host identity explaining less than 30% of the variation in AM fungal communities. These results combined question the likelihood of predictable co-occurrence, and therefore evolution of codependency, between plant and AM fungal taxa across locations. We argue that codependency is most likely to occur in homogeneous environments where specific plant - AM fungal pairings have functional consequences for the symbiosis. We end by outlining critical aspects to consider moving forward.
Topics: Codependency, Psychological; Mycobiome; Mycorrhizae; Plant Roots; Plants; Soil Microbiology; Symbiosis
PubMed: 32452032
DOI: 10.1111/nph.16676 -
Scientific Reports Apr 2023The mycobiome is an integral component of every living organism. Among other fungi associated with plants, endophytes are an interesting and favorable group of...
The mycobiome is an integral component of every living organism. Among other fungi associated with plants, endophytes are an interesting and favorable group of microorganisms, but information regarding them is still largely unknown. Wheat is the most economically significant and essential crop for global food security, which is exposed to a range of abiotic and biotic stresses. Profiling plants' mycobiomes can help in sustainable, chemical-reducing wheat production. The main objective of this work is to understand the structure of endogenous fungal communities in winter and spring wheat cultivars growing under different growth conditions. Further, the study attempted to investigate the effect of host genotype, host organs and plant growth conditions on the composition and distribution of fungi in wheat plant tissues. Comprehensive, high throughput analyzes of the diversity and community structure of the wheat mycobiome were performed, complemented by the simultaneous isolation of endophytic fungi, resulting in candidate strains for future research. The findings of the study revealed that the type of plant organs and growth conditions influence the wheat mycobiome. It was also assessed that fungi representing the genera Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Sarocladium form the core mycobiome of Polish spring and winter wheat cultivars. The coexistence of both symbiotic and pathogenic species in the internal tissues of wheat was also observed. Those commonly considered beneficial for plants can be used in further research as a valuable source of potential biological control factors and/or biostimulators of wheat plant growth.
Topics: Mycobiome; Triticum; Seasons; Fungi; Endophytes
PubMed: 37055465
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-33195-y -
PloS One 2021The fungal part of the pulmonary microbiome (mycobiome) is understudied. We report the composition of the oral and pulmonary mycobiome in participants with COPD compared... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
BACKGROUND
The fungal part of the pulmonary microbiome (mycobiome) is understudied. We report the composition of the oral and pulmonary mycobiome in participants with COPD compared to controls in a large-scale single-centre bronchoscopy study (MicroCOPD).
METHODS
Oral wash and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was collected from 93 participants with COPD and 100 controls. Fungal DNA was extracted before sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) region of the fungal ribosomal RNA gene cluster. Taxonomic barplots were generated, and we compared taxonomic composition, Shannon index, and beta diversity between study groups, and by use of inhaled steroids.
RESULTS
The oral and pulmonary mycobiomes from controls and participants with COPD were dominated by Candida, and there were more Candida in oral samples compared to BAL for both study groups. Malassezia and Sarocladium were also frequently found in pulmonary samples. No consistent differences were found between study groups in terms of differential abundance/distribution. Alpha and beta diversity did not differ between study groups in pulmonary samples, but beta diversity varied with sample type. The mycobiomes did not seem to be affected by use of inhaled steroids.
CONCLUSION
Oral and pulmonary samples differed in taxonomic composition and diversity, possibly indicating the existence of a pulmonary mycobiome.
Topics: Aged; Case-Control Studies; DNA, Fungal; Female; Fungi; Humans; Lung; Male; Middle Aged; Mouth; Mycobiome; Norway; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive
PubMed: 33826639
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0248967 -
Pediatric Research Aug 2023The composition of the gut fungal microbiome, mycobiome, is likely associated with human health. Yet, the development of gut mycobiome is poorly understood in infants...
BACKGROUND
The composition of the gut fungal microbiome, mycobiome, is likely associated with human health. Yet, the development of gut mycobiome is poorly understood in infants and children. Here we investigate how perinatal events influence the development of gut mycobiome.
METHODS
In this prospective cohort study of 140 infants, we used ITS gene sequencing of fecal samples from birth to the age of 18 months. We compared gut mycobiome composition according to delivery mode and exposure to intrapartum antibiotics during vaginal delivery.
RESULTS
At birth, gut mycobiome were dominated by the genus Candida, at 6-month stool samples by Malassezia and Cystofilobasidium, and the 18-month stool samples by Trichosporon and unidentified fungi. Perinatal factors altered mycobiome. At 18 months, gut mycobiome of infants born vaginally consisted mostly of Trichosporon (32%) and unidentified fungi (31%), while those born via Cesarean section delivery samples had mycobiome dominated by Saccharomyces (50%). At the age of 18 months, those exposed to intrapartum antibiotics had mycobiome dominated by Trichosporon (66%) not seen in those unexposed to antibiotics.
CONCLUSIONS
Delivery mode and exposure to intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis were markedly associated with gut mycobiome composition from birth to 18 months of age.
IMPACT
The composition of the gut mycobiome is likely associated with human health. Yet, the development of gut mycobiome is poorly understood in infants and children. In this prospective cohort study, delivery mode and exposure to intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis were markedly associated with gut mycobiome composition from birth to 18 months of age. The impact of intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis on fungal microbiome in vaginally born infants, previously shown to influence gut bacteriome composition, may be explained by the interaction between bacteria and fungi. Gut mycobiome composition likely deserves further investigation in relation to gut microbiome and health in children.
Topics: Infant, Newborn; Humans; Infant; Child; Pregnancy; Female; Child, Preschool; Mycobiome; Cesarean Section; Prospective Studies; Parturition; Anti-Bacterial Agents
PubMed: 36670159
DOI: 10.1038/s41390-023-02471-y -
Microbiome Apr 2022Extensive work has been accomplished to characterize the intestinal bacterial community, known as the microbiota, and its association with host health and disease....
BACKGROUND
Extensive work has been accomplished to characterize the intestinal bacterial community, known as the microbiota, and its association with host health and disease. However, very little is known about the spatiotemporal development and the origin of a minor intestinal fungal community, known as the mycobiota, in humans and animals, particularly in avian species.
RESULTS
In this study, we comprehensively characterized the biogeography and succession of the gastrointestinal (GI) mycobiota of broiler chickens and further revealed the fungal sources that are responsible for initial and long-term establishment of the mycobiota in the GI tract. Using Illumina sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of fungal rRNA genes, we detected significant spatial and temporal differences in the mycobiota along the GI tract. In contrary to the microbiota, the mycobiota was more diverse in the upper than the lower GI tract with no apparent trend of succession up to 42 days of age. The intestinal mycobiota was dominated by the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota with Gibberella, Aspergillus, and Candida being the most abundant genera. Although the chicken mycobiota was highly dynamic, Fusarium pseudonygamai was dominant throughout the GI tract regardless of age in this study. The core chicken mycobiome consisted of 26 fungal taxa accounting for greater than 85% of the fungal population in each GI location. However, we observed high variations of the intestinal mycobiota among different studies. We also showed that the total fungal population varied greatly from 1.0 × 10 to 1.1 × 10 /g digesta along the GI tract and only accounted for less than 0.06% of the bacteria in day-42 broilers. Finally, we revealed that the mycobiota from the hatchery environment was responsible for initial colonization in the GI tract of newly hatched chickens, but was quickly replaced by the fungi in the diet within 3 days.
CONCLUSIONS
Relative to the intestinal microbiota that consists of trillions of bacteria in hundreds of different species and becomes relatively stabilized as animals age, the chicken intestinal mycobiota is a minor microbial community that is temporally dynamic with limited diversity and no obvious pattern of successive changes. However, similar to the microbiota, the chicken mycobiota is spatially different along the GI tract, although it is more diverse in the upper than the lower GI tract. Dietary fungi are the major source of the intestinal mycobiota in growing chickens. Video abstract.
Topics: Animals; Chickens; Fungi; Gastrointestinal Tract; Intestines; Mycobiome
PubMed: 35365230
DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01252-9 -
Scientific Reports Jul 2021Microplastic (MP) is a pervasive pollutant in nature that is colonised by diverse groups of microbes, including potentially pathogenic species. Fungi have been largely...
Microplastic (MP) is a pervasive pollutant in nature that is colonised by diverse groups of microbes, including potentially pathogenic species. Fungi have been largely neglected in this context, despite their affinity for plastics and their impact as pathogens. To unravel the role of MP as a carrier of fungal pathogens in terrestrial ecosystems and the immediate human environment, epiplastic mycobiomes from municipal plastic waste from Kenya were deciphered using ITS metabarcoding as well as a comprehensive meta-analysis, and visualised via scanning electron as well as confocal laser scanning microscopy. Metagenomic and microscopic findings provided complementary evidence that the terrestrial plastisphere is a suitable ecological niche for a variety of fungal organisms, including important animal and plant pathogens, which formed the plastisphere core mycobiome. We show that MPs serve as selective artificial microhabitats that not only attract distinct fungal communities, but also accumulate certain opportunistic human pathogens, such as cryptococcal and Phoma-like species. Therefore, MP must be regarded a persistent reservoir and potential vector for fungal pathogens in soil environments. Given the increasing amount of plastic waste in terrestrial ecosystems worldwide, this interrelation may have severe consequences for the trans-kingdom and multi-organismal epidemiology of fungal infections on a global scale.
Topics: Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; Fungi; Microplastics; Mycobiome
PubMed: 34267241
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-92405-7