AUTHOR=De Vincentis Antonio , Santonico Marco , Del Chierico Federica , Altomare Annamaria , Marigliano Benedetta , Laudisio Alice , Reddel Sofia , Grasso Simone , Zompanti Alessandro , Pennazza Giorgio , Putignani Lorenza , Guarino Michele Pier Luca , Cicala Michele , Antonelli Incalzi Raffaele 

TITLE=Gut Microbiota and Related Electronic Multisensorial System Changes in Subjects With Symptomatic Uncomplicated Diverticular Disease Undergoing Rifaximin Therapy

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2021.655474

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2021.655474

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> Intestinal dysbiosis might play a pathogenetic role in subjects with symptomatic uncomplicated diverticular disease (SUDD), but the effect of rifaximin therapy has been scantly explored with regard to gut microbiota variations in patients with SUDD.</p><p><bold>Aims:</bold> To verify to which extent rifaximin treatment affects the gut microbiota and whether an electronic multisensorial assessment of stools and breath has the potential for detecting these changes.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> Breath and stool samples were collected from consecutive patients with SUDD before and after a 7 days' therapy with rifaximin. Stool microbiota was assessed, and the electronic multisensorial assessment was carried out by means of the BIONOTE electronic (e-)tongue in stools and (e-)nose in breath.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Forty-three subjects (female 60%, median age 66 years) were included, and 20 (47%) reported clinical improvement after rifaximin therapy. Alpha and beta diversity of stool microbiota did not significantly change after treatment, while a significant variation of selected taxa was shown (i.e., <italic>Citrobacter, Coprococcus, Anaerotruncus, Blautia, Eggerthella lenta, Dehalobacterium, SMB53</italic>, and <italic>Haemophilus parainfluenzae</italic>). Overall, the electronic multisensorial system suboptimally mirrored microbiota changes, but it was able to efficiently predict patients' clinical improvement after rifaximin with accuracies ranging from 0.81 to 0.98.</p><p><bold>Conclusions:</bold> In patients with SUDD, rifaximin administration is associated with significant variation of selected taxa. While inaccurate in predicting gut microbiota change, an electronic multisensorial system, made up of e-tongue and e-nose, was able to predict clinical improvement, thus potentially qualifying as an easy and cheap tool to forecast subjects taking most likely benefit from rifaximin therapy.</p>