Lung Microbiome Is Influenced by the Environment and Asthmatic Status in an Equine Model of Asthma.
Abstract: There is evidence that the lung microbiome differs between patients with asthma and healthy humans, but the effect of environmental conditions and medication is unknown and difficult to study. Equine asthma is a naturally occurring chronic airway disease characterized by reversible airway inflammation and bronchoconstriction upon exposure to inhaled antigens. In the present study, we evaluated the effect that environmental conditions and disease status have on pulmonary, nasal, and oral microbiomes. Six asthmatic and six healthy horses were studied while at pasture ("low antigen exposure"), as well as when being housed indoors and fed good-quality hay ("moderate exposure") and poor-quality hay ("high exposure"). At each time point, lung function was recorded; BAL, oral, and nasal rinses were collected; and 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed. Asthmatic horses developed airway obstruction and inflammation under moderate and high antigen exposure conditions, whereas nonasthmatic horses showed mild inflammation under high antigen exposure, without bronchoconstriction. Lung, oral, and nasal communities clustered by environmental condition, but only lung communities were different between healthy and asthmatic horses. The association between asthma and lung microbiome was strongest in horses under moderate antigen exposure. Pulmonary, oral, and nasal microbiomes are influenced by environmental conditions, but only the pulmonary microbiome differs between horses with and without asthma. This difference, seen mainly when airway inflammation was present in horses with asthma but not in control animals, suggests that the altered lung microbiome in asthma might not be inherent but coincident with inflammation.
Publication Date: 2018-09-06 PubMed ID: 30183323DOI: 10.1165/rcmb.2017-0228OCGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research discusses how the lung microbiome, a collection of microorganisms living in the lungs, varies based on environmental conditions and asthma status in horses. The study suggested that while environmental conditions influence the lung, oral, and nasal microbiomes, differences exist only between asthmatic and healthy horses when focusing on the lung microbiome.
Methodology of the Study
- The researchers studied six asthmatic and six healthy horses under three different environmental conditions: low antigen exposure at pasture, moderate exposure indoors with quality hay, and high exposure indoors with poor quality hay.
- At each point, researchers recorded the lung function and collected samples from BAL (Bronchoalveolar lavage, a diagnostic procedure in which a tube is inserted into the lungs to collect cells and other materials), oral and nasal rinses.
- They performed a 16S rRNA gene sequencing on these samples, a widely used method for studying microbiomes, to investigate the bacterial diversity.
Key Findings
- Asthmatic horses developed airway obstruction and inflammation under moderate and high antigen exposure conditions, while non-asthmatic horses only showed mild inflammation under high antigen exposure, without any bronchoconstriction.
- Different microbiomes in the lungs, mouth, and nose clustered or grouped together based on the environmental conditions.
- However, only the lung microbiome was different between healthy and asthmatic horses. The association between asthma and lung microbiome was the strongest when horses were under moderate antigen exposure.
Implications
- The study suggests that the lung microbiome differences seen in asthma may not be inherent features of the disease, but are coincident with inflammation.
- This suggests that the lung microbiome could potentially be influenced or changed as a response to inflammation caused by asthma.
- Further research could explore this connection between the lung microbiome and inflammation, potentially leading to new treatment options for asthmatic conditions.
Cite This Article
APA
Fillion-Bertrand G, Dickson RP, Boivin R, Lavoie JP, Huffnagle GB, Leclere M.
(2018).
Lung Microbiome Is Influenced by the Environment and Asthmatic Status in an Equine Model of Asthma.
Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol, 60(2), 189-197.
https://doi.org/10.1165/rcmb.2017-0228OC Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- 1 Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Montreal, St. Hyacinthe, Q, Canada; and.
- 2 Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
- 1 Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Montreal, St. Hyacinthe, Q, Canada; and.
- 1 Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Montreal, St. Hyacinthe, Q, Canada; and.
- 2 Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
- 1 Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Montreal, St. Hyacinthe, Q, Canada; and.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Asthma / microbiology
- Asthma / veterinary
- Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / cytology
- Cell Count
- Cross-Over Studies
- Environment
- Female
- Horse Diseases / microbiology
- Horses
- Lung / microbiology
- Male
- Microbiota / genetics
- Microbiota / physiology
- Mouth / microbiology
- Nose / microbiology
- Respiratory Function Tests
Citations
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