Aggravation of Airway Inflammation in RSV-Infected Asthmatic Mice
Following Infection-Induced Alteration of Gut Microbiota
Abstract
This investigation was to confirm the relationship between asthma,
respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, and the gut environment by
analyzing the alterations in the gut microbiota of RSV-infected
asthmatic mice. All BALB/c male mice were randomly separated into the
control group (CON), ovalbumin (OVA) group, and OVA + RSV group (n = 8).
At the end of experiment, we evaluated the RSV-infected asthma model
using Wright-Giemsa staining, immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels using ELISA,
and inflammatory cells using Hematoxylin and eosin (HE). Furthermore,
airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) was measured by a Buxco’s modular and
invasive system. Histopathological analysis of the murine lung tissue
revealed that the inflammatory infiltration, edema, and collagen
hyperplasia were more severe in the OVA + RSV group than in the other
groups. Higher expression of interleukin-5 (IL-5), IL-13, IL-25, and
IL-33 in mice from the OVA and OVA + RSV groups (*P < 0.05 and
**P < 0.01). Moreover, feces were collected for 16S rRNA
sequencing and data analysis. The associations between
Prevotellaceae_UCG_001, which is positive, and immunoglobulin E (IgE),
IL-13, and IL-33 were highly significant (***P < 0.001), IL-5
(**P < 0.01) and IL-25 (*P < 0.05).
Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136_group was also positive, and significantly
associated with IgE and IL-33. Helicobacter and
Uncultured_Bacteroidales_bacterium are negative, had associated with
IL-25 (*P < 0.05). Thus, we conclude that asthma with RSV
infection can alter the major components of gut microbiota and influence
the mutual relationship between the core operational taxonomic units
(OTUs) and IgE as well as inflammatory cytokines.