Malignant Prostate Tissue Is Associated with Different Microbiome Gene Functions

Specific microorganisms and changes in the constituents of the microbiome are linked with pathologies in humans, such as malignancy. Within the prostate, certain bacterial communities may locate advantageous conditions and establish themselves, thus outperforming alternative species. In this study, a comparison of malignant (MT) and benign prostate tissues (BT) or benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) was performed in order to delineate the respective microbiomes in each sample type and to determine their pertinence to prostatic tumourigenesis. Specimens of MT (n = 26) and PT (n = 13)/BPH (n = 10) were acquired from patients. No variations in the make-up of the microbiome were seen when MT and PT specimens were compared. Changes in the bacterial constituents and functional genes were seen in the specimens obtained from patients with MT when contrasted against samples from those with BPH. Pelomonas was the genus with the highest abundance in MT specimens. It is proposed that dissimilar microbiome gene functions are present in the contexts of MT and PT samples

Thymoquinone (TQ) inhibits the replication of intracellular Mycobacterium tuberculosis in macrophages and modulates nitric oxide production

Abstract Background Human tuberculosis, which is caused by the pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis, remains a major public health concern. Increasing drug resistance poses a threat of disease resurgence and continues to cause considerable mortality worldwide, which necessitates the development of new drugs with improved efficacy. Thymoquinone (TQ), an essential compound of Nigella sativa, was previously reported as an active anti-tuberculosis agent. Methods In this study, the effects of TQ on intracellular mycobacterial replication are examined in macrophages. In addition, its effect on mycobacteria-induced NO production and pro-inflammatory responses were investigated in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB)-infected Type II human alveolar and human myeloid cell lines. Results TQ at concentrations ranging from 12.5 to 25 μg/mL and 6.25 to 12.5 μg/mL reduced intracellular M. tuberculosis H37Rv and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) 72 h post-infection in RAW 264.7 cells. TQ treatment also produced a concentration-dependent reduction in nitric oxide production in both H37Rv and XDR-TB infected RAW 264.7 cells. Furthermore, TQ reduced the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and pro-inflammatory molecules such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interlukin-6 (IL-6) in H37Rv-infected cells and eventually reduced pathogen-derived stress in host cells. Conclusions TQ inhibits intracellular H37Rv and XDR-TB replication and MTB-induced production of NO and pro-inflammatory molecules. Therefore, along with its anti-inflammatory effects, TQ represents a prospective treatment option to combat Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection

Characteristics and Microbiome Profiling of Korean Gochang Bokbunja Vinegar by the Fermentation Process

As NGS (next-generation sequencing) technology develops, metagenomics-based microbial ecology, that is, microbiome research, has recently led to the science of fermented food. Based on the above technology, a study was conducted to understand the characteristics of vinegar made from bokbunja, a local crop in Gochang-gun, Korea. Physicochemical characteristics of vinegar, organic acid analysis, microbial community analysis, and electronic tongue analysis were explored while fermenting the vinegar for 70 days under eight fermentation conditions according to the concentration of bokbunja liquid (100% or 50%), type of fermenter (porcelain jar or stainless container), and fermentation environment (natural outdoor conditions or temperature/oxygen controlled). As a result, distinct microbial community patterns were found in the stage of acetic acid fermentation and, accordingly, this fermentation of Gochang vinegar is classified into three categories. Vinegar prepared by the traditional method of outdoor fermentation using jars showed characteristics of “Acetobacter (42.1%)/Lactobacillus (56.9%) fusion fermentation”. Under conditions where oxygen and temperature were controlled indoors using jars, characteristics of “Komagataeibacter (90.2%) fermentation” were found. “Lactobacillus (92.2%) fermentation” characteristics were discovered under natural outdoor conditions using stainless steel containers. These fermentation pattern differences were related to taxonomic phylogenetic diversity, which was also considered involved in determining organic acid production and taste. These results will be helpful as a scientific basis for understanding the fermentation characteristics of Gochang vinegar and developing high-value-added traditional vinegar products

Increased Susceptibility of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to Ethionamide by Expressing PPs-Induced Rv0560c

Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Drug-resistant tuberculosis exacerbates its threat. Despite long-term and costly treatment with second-line drugs, treatment failure rates and mortality remain high. Therefore, new strategies for developing new drugs and improving the efficiency of existing drug treatments are urgently needed. Our research team reported that PPs, a new class of potential anti-tuberculosis drug candidates, can inhibit the growth of drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Here, we report a synergistic effect of PPs with ethionamide (ETH), one of the second-line drugs, as a result of further research on PPs. While investigating gene expression changes based on microarray and 2DE (two-dimensional gel electrophoresis), it was found that PPs induced the greatest overexpression of Rv0560c in M. tuberculosis. Based on this result, a protein microarray using Rv0560c protein was performed, and it was confirmed that Rv0560c had the highest interaction with EthR, a repressor for EthA involved in activating ETH. Accordingly, a synergistic experiment was conducted under the hypothesis of increased susceptibility of ETH to M. tuberculosis by PPs. As a result, in the presence of 0.5× MIC PPs, ETH showed a growth inhibitory effect on drug-sensitive and -resistant M. tuberculosis even at a much lower concentration of about 10-fold than the original MIC of ETH. It is also suggested that the effect was due to the interaction between PPs and Rv2887, the repressor of Rv0560c. This effect was also confirmed in a mouse model of pulmonary tuberculosis, confirming the potential of PPs as a booster to enhance the susceptibility of M. tuberculosis to ETH in treating drug-resistant tuberculosis. However, more in-depth mechanistic studies and extensive animal and clinical trials are needed in the future

The Effects of Iron Deficiency on the Gut Microbiota in Women of Childbearing Age

Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most prevalent and common nutritional deficiency worldwide and is a global health problem with significant risk, particularly among women of reproductive age. Oral iron supplementation is the most widely used and cost-effective treatment for iron deficiency and IDA. However, there are limitations regarding side effects such as enteritis, treatment compliance, and bioavailability. Intestinal microbiome characteristic research has been recently conducted to overcome these issues, but more is needed. Against this background, a metagenomics study on the 16S gene in the feces of young women vulnerable to IDA was conducted. As a result of analyzing 16 normal subjects and 15 IDA patients, significant differences in bacterial community distribution were identified. In particular, a significant decrease in Faecalibacterium was characteristic in IDA patients compared with normal subjects. Furthermore, in the case of patients who recovered from IDA following iron supplementation treatment, it was confirmed that Faecalibacterium significantly recovered to normal levels. However, no significance in beta diversity was seen compared with before treatment. There were also no differences in the beta diversity results between the recovered and normal subjects. Therefore, intestinal dysbiosis during the disease state was considered to be restored as IDA improved. Although the results were derived from a limited number of subjects and additional research is needed, the results of this study are expected to be the basis for developing treatment and prevention strategies based on host–microbiome crosstalk in IDA