Sputum Microbiome Dynamics in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Patients during an Exacerbation Event and Post-Stabilization.

López Caro, Juan Carlos; Santibáñez, Miguel; García Rivero, Juan Luis; Villanueva, Manuel; Sainz, Jesús; González Astorqui, Pablo; Hierro, Margarita; Rodríguez Porres, Mariano; Paras Bravo, Paula; Mira, Alex; Rodriguez, Juan Carlos; Galiana, Antonio

BACKGROUND Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affects up to 65 million people worldwide, and COPD exacerbation causes tissue damage and subsequent loss of lung function. It is a multifactorial event in which respiratory infections are involved, but little is known about its dynamics. OBJECTIVES The objective of our study was to determine the microbiome composition during an exacerbation event and post-stabilization. METHODS We conducted an observational analytical study of a cohort of 55 COPD patients in which 2 sputum samples (the first taken during an exacerbation event and the second during clinical post-stabilization) were submitted to 16s RNA ribosomal analysis by Illumina Miseq Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). The presence of respiratory viruses was also determined. RESULTS Our study found a stable microbiome composition in the post-stabilization sputum samples of COPD patients, and 4 additional microbiomes in samples taken during the exacerbation, 3 of which showed a marked dysbiosis by Haemophilus, Pseudomonas, and Serratia. The fourth exacerbation microbiome had a very similar composition to post-stabilization samples, but some pathogens such as Moraxella and respiratory viruses were also found. CONCLUSIONS Our study reveals the main protagonists involved in lung microbiome dynamics during an exacerbation event and post-stabilization in COPD patients by NGS analysis.