ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the differences of gut microbiota in patients with schizophrenia between onset and remission. Methods Twelve patients with schizophrenia in the stage of onset were selected as the episode group. Thirteen gender-, age-and BMI-matched patients with schizophrenia during the remission period were selected as the control group. The fecal specimens of the two groups were collected for high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, and the gut microbiota differences between the two groups were analyzed. Results The chao index and ace index of gut microbiota was lower in the episode group than in the control group (t=2.385,P=0.026; t=3.068,P=0.005). The relative abundance of Bacteroides was higher and the relative abundance of Prevotella was lower in the episodes group than in the control group (Z=-2.013, P =0.044; Z=-3.427, P=0.001). The relative abundance of the Prevotella was negatively correlated with the PANSS score (r=-0.577, P=0.003). Conclusion Schizophrenia in the stage of acute episode have altered gut microbiota compared with those in the stage of remission and the gut microbiota is significantly corrected with mental symptoms.