Characteristics of the gut microbiome in patients with Esophageal Squamous Cell Cancer

Abstract

Abstract Background: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma(ESCC) is a malignant tumor with high degree of malignancy worldwide, and the 5-year survival rate is only 20%. Previous evidence has linked the composition of gut bacteria to inflammation and the development of cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between intestinal flora composition and ESCC. In this study, fecal flora was used to represent gastrointestinal flora, and the specimens in the experimental group were stool of patients with ESCC confirmed by pathology. Stool samples from 13 patients with ESCC were collected as experimental group(ESCC), and stool samples from 13 healthy people were collected as control group(HC). There were 762 OTUs in the ESCC group and the HC group, 703 OTUs in the ESCC group and 418 OTUs in the HC group. Prevotella, butyricella and Satterella were the most abundant in the preoperative feces of patients with ESCC, while the most abundant in the feces of healthy people were cyanobacteria, pilonospiraceae and Sitterella. KEGG analysis showed that there were significant differences in membrane and intracellular structural molecules, cell antigens, toluene degradation, biosynthesis of ubiquitin and other terpanoid quinones, spindolipid biosynthesis and ganglia metabolic pathways between ESCC group and HC group. COG analysis showed that the ESCC group contained more peritinase, 2-succinyl-6-hydroxy-2, 4-cyclohexadiene-1-carboxylate synthetase, pyruvate: ferridoxin oxidoreductase and related 2-oxic acid: ferridoxin oxidoreductase β subunits. The occurrence and development of ESCC reduces the diversity of intestinal flora, and the composition of intestinal flora of ESCC is significantly different from that of HC, especially bacteria related to inflammation and lipid metabolism, which may become pathogenic bacteria promoting the development of ESCC.