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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Transplant.
Sec. Transplantation Immunology
Volume 3 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/frtra.2024.1400067
This article is part of the Research Topic Microbiota and Metabolites in Transplant Immunity: from Bench to Bedside View all articles

Antibiotic Subclasses Differentially Perturb the Gut Microbiota in Kidney Transplant Recipients

Provisionally accepted
Hanbo Dong Hanbo Dong 1Runzhe Li Runzhe Li 2Ni Zhao Ni Zhao 2Darshana M. Dadhania Darshana M. Dadhania 1Manikkam Suthanthiran Manikkam Suthanthiran 1John Lee John Lee 1*Wodan Ling Wodan Ling 1*
  • 1 Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell University, New York, New York, United States
  • 2 Johns Hopkins Biostatistics Center, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Abstract Introduction. The impact of antibiotics on the gut microbiota in kidney transplant recipients is not well characterized. In this study, we determine the impact of different subclasses of antibiotics on the gut microbiota in a cohort of 168 kidney transplant recipients. Methods. Gut microbiome profiling was performed on 510 fecal specimens using 16S rRNA gene sequencing of the V4-V5 hypervariable region. We classified fecal specimens by antibiotic exposure into 5 categories: Beta-lactam, Fluoroquinolone (FQ), Beta-lactam & FQ Group, Other Antibiotics, and No Antibiotic (No Abx). Mixed-effects regression models were utilized to identify changes in microbial diversity and in the centered log-ratio (CLR) transformed abundance of genera while adjusting for important covariates. Results. Antibiotic administration was associated with a significant decrease in the Shannon alpha diversity index, a decreased abundance of 11 taxa including Eubacterium and Ruminococcus, and an increased abundance of 16 taxa including Enterococcus and Staphylococcus. Exposure to Beta-lactam antibiotics was associated with an increased abundance of 10 taxa including Enterococcus and a decreased abundance of 5 taxa including Eubacterium while exposure to FQ antibiotics was associated with an increased abundance of 3 taxa and a decreased abundance of 4 taxa including Ruminococcus. Conclusions. Beta-lactam antibiotics and FQ antibiotics have a profound impact on the gut microbiota in kidney transplant recipients. Given the link of the gut microbiota to infectious complications, antibiotic associated changes in the microbiota may lead to an increased risk for further infections.

    Keywords: kidney tranplantation, Gut Microbiota, antibiotic subclasses, Microbial Diversity, Differentially abundant bacteria

    Received: 13 Mar 2024; Accepted: 27 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Dong, Li, Zhao, Dadhania, Suthanthiran, Lee and Ling. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    John Lee, Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell University, New York, 10065, New York, United States
    Wodan Ling, Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell University, New York, 10065, New York, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.