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Purpose: This study aimed to explore inflammatory biomarkers, stool's functional bacterial groups and their possible link to portal vein thrombosis (PVT) in patients with liver cirrhosis (LC). Materials and Methods: An observational study of 300 participants: 200 inhospital cirrhotic patients, who met inclusion criteria, equally assigned into two groups, based on the presence or absence of PVT and 100 healthy controls was carried out. Results: The PVT group displayed significant differences related to older age, cigarettes smoking history, emergency admission, higher Child-Pugh score, metabolic related disorders and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, as well as non-obstructive aspects, with chronic thrombi. The PVT group exhibited significant differences related to biomarkers such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, C-reactive protein (CRP), D-dimers (D-D), as well as gut overall dysbiosis (DB) and alteration of different functional bacterial groups of the gut microbiota. Strong positive correlations were observed between PVT severity, and TNF-alpha, CRP, D-D as well as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) positive bacteria. Esophageal varices, age and abdominal pain were independent predictors for PVT severity as well as CRP, TNF-alpha and D-D. Conclusion: Patients with LC and PVT displayed elevation of TNF-alpha, CRP, D-D alterations of the functional gut microbiota, as well as several morphological and clinical particularities. Although the LPS positive gut microbiota was linked to inflammatory biomarkers and PVT severity, it was not proven to be an independent predictor of the PVT severity like CRP, TNF-alpha and D-D.
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Background: Gallstone disease (GSD) is more commonly presented in aged people. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to explore the insights of metabolic performance of bacterial species from gut microbiota as well as the clinical background in middle-aged and elderly patients with GSD. Patients and Methods: This is an observational study concerning 120 research participants. Of those, 90 patients with symptomatic GSD addressed for cholecystectomy, average age 59.83 ± 15.32 years: 45 with cholesterol rich gallstones (CGSs), 45 with pigment gallstones (PGSs) and 30 healthy controls joined this observational study. Clinical examination, lab work-ups, upper and lower digestive video-endoscopies, abdominal ultrasound/CT and gallbladder motility assessment by Dodd's method were performed. Overall stool dysbiosis (DB) was assessed as 1 = minor, 2 = mild, 3 = severe, species being identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization method. Stool samples from dysbiotic patients were analyzed by a next generation sequencing method with operational taxonomic unit identification. Results: Patients with GSD presented with a significant high range of overall gut DB (p < 0.0001) when compared with controls. Those with CGSs compared with those having PGSs displayed significant clinical differences related to elderly age, lifestyle and diet particularities, obesity, dyslipidemia, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose tolerance, as well as motility disturbances of gallbladder with a decrease of the ejection fraction. Significant increase of overall DB range and alterations of several functional bacterial species with a decrease of butyrate, lactate, acetate/propionate and methane producers, mucin degrading bacteria, biodiversity index of microbiota, as well as an increase of lipopolysaccharide positive bacteria were significantly present in patients with CGSs. Conclusion: Middle-aged and elderly patients with GSD and a clinical background characterized by particular lifestyle, metabolic and gallbladder motility issues displayed significant modifications of biodiversity, overall gut DB and alterations of several functional bacterial species, with a decrease of their metabolic performance.
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Background and Objectives: Migraine with aura (MA) could be considered a risk factor for developing atherosclerosis and cardio-vascular events. However, less is known about the relation between migraine without aura (MWA) and atherosclerosis. Our study aimed to assess whether young female migraineurs, with alterations of gut microbiota could associate early atherosclerosis. Materials and Methods: We conducted an exploratory cross-sectional, pilot study concerning 105 consecutive young females having MWA, with recent normal brain scans, that were free of cardio-vascular risk factors, non-smokers, not on oral contraception, not pregnant, and without thyroid or parathyroid diseases, chronic organ failure, cancer, or on probiotic or antibiotic treatment. Consecutive to assessment of gut microbiota, patients were assigned to two groups: dysbiosis positive (n = 45) and dysbiosis negative (n = 60). All study participants underwent clinical examinations with an assessment of migraine severity, body mass index and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), as well as laboratory workups. Statistical analysis was performed using a chi-squared test (χ2), a two-tailed t-test and a nonparametric Spearman's correlation test. Results: The dysbiosis positive migraineurs showed a significant increase in CIMT along with several anthropometrical, biological and clinical particularities. Significant positive correlations between dysbiosis and CIMT, glycosylated hemoglobin, migraine severity and duration, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and body mass index were found. Conclusions: Young female migraineurs with significant alterations of gut microbiota experienced early signs of atherosclerosis and displayed severe migraine disability, as well as multiple biological and clinical particularities.
