AUTHOR=Yuan Xin , Chen Ruimin , Zhang Ying , Lin Xiangquan , Yang Xiaohong 

TITLE=Altered Gut Microbiota in Children With Hyperuricemia

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Endocrinology

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/endocrinology/articles/10.3389/fendo.2022.848715

DOI=10.3389/fendo.2022.848715

ISSN=1664-2392

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>In adults, gut dysbiosis may contribute to the pathogenesis of gout. However, the characteristics of gut microbiota in children with hyperuricemia (HUA) in the absence of clinical gout have not been explored.</p></sec><sec><title>Objective</title><p>This present study analyzed the gut microbiota in children with HUA as compared to controls (Con) and explored bacterial associations that may account for differences.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>A total of 80 children were enrolled in this study; they were divided into HUA and Con according to the level of serum uric acid (UA). The composition of gut microbiota was investigated by 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Principal coordinate analysis revealed that gut microbiota of the HUA group was clustered together and separated partly from the Con group. There was no difference in alpha-diversity between the two groups. However, Spearman’s correlation analysis revealed that serum UA level positively correlated with genera <italic>Actinomyces, Morganella</italic>, and <italic>Streptococcus</italic>, and negatively associated with the producers of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), such as <italic>Alistipes, Faecalibacterium</italic>, and <italic>Oscillospira</italic>, and the sulfidogenic bacteria <italic>Bilophila.</italic> The members of the genera <italic>Alistipes</italic> and <italic>Bilophila</italic> in the Con group were significantly more prevalent than the HUA subjects. Compared to the Con cohort, metabolic pathway predictions found that the superpathways of purine nucleotide <italic>de novo</italic> biosynthesis were decreased in HUA subjects, whereas the superpathway of purine deoxyribonucleoside de	gradation was increased.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>The composition of the gut microbiota in children with HUA differs from Con. Although causality cannot be established, modification in the microbiota that produces SCFA and sulfide may promote HUA.</p></sec>