Moraxellaceae and Moraxella interact with the altered airway mycobiome in asthma

Abstract

ABSTRACTAirway microbial-microbial interaction plays an important role in chronic airway inflammatory diseases such as asthma. Moraxella is widely regarded as a human respiratory tract pathogen. We aimed to investigate the interactions among Moraxella, Moraxellaceae (to which Moraxella belongs) and the airway microbiome in asthma. Induced sputum samples were obtained from 116 asthma patients and 29 healthy individuals, and the bacterial/fungal communities were profiled using 16S rRNA and ITS1 DNA gene sequencing. We found that asthma patients harboured significantly greater airway bacterial and fungal α-diversity than that of healthy individuals. Moraxellaceae, Moraxella and Moraxella otu19 (bacteria), and Schizophyllaceae, Polyporaceae, Aspergillus, Schizophyllum and Candida (fungi) were increased in the airway of asthma. Moreover, Moraxellaceae, Schizophyllaceae, Polyporaceae and Candida were positively associated with airway fungal α-diversity. Correlation networks revealed Moraxellaceae and Moraxella as microbial “hubs” in asthma that had significant negative connections with multiple bacterial communities, such as Leptotrichiaceae, Lachnospiraceae, Peptostreptococcaceae, Porphyromonadaceae, Prevotella, Veillonella, Rothia and Leptotrichia, but positive interactions with fungal communities such as Schizophyllaceae, Polyporaceae, Candida and Meyerozyma. Together, our finding revealed an altered microbiome and complex microbial-microbial interactions in the airway of asthma. Moraxellaceae and Moraxella showed significant interactions with the airway mycobiome, providing potential insights into the novel pathogenic mechanisms of asthma.IMPORTANCEWith the advent of culture-independent techniques, growing evidence suggests that the airway microbiome is closely correlated with chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma. The complex microbial-microbial interaction exists in the airways of both healthy individuals and patients with respiratory diseases, which is of great significance for the pathogenesis and disease progression of asthma. In this study, we evaluated the airway dysbiosis in asthma patients, described the interaction between Moraxellaceae, Moraxella and airway bacterial/fungal communities, and it contributes to further understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of asthma.