Gut dysbiosis and lack of short chain fatty acids in a Chinese cohort of patients with multiple sclerosis.

Abstract Background Recent studies, mostly conducted in Western countries, showed that gut microbes are involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). Objective The aim of this study was to investigate whether gut dysbiosis is relevant to the initiation and progression of MS in a Chinese population. Methods Next-generation sequencing (NGS) and gas chromatography (GC) were integrated and used to compare the fecal bacterial communities and the short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels among relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) patients (n = 34), neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) patients (n = 34), and healthy controls (HCs) (n = 34). T-cell profile analyses were performed by flow cytometry for MS patients and matched controls (n = 12). Results (1) The gut microbiome of MS patients was characterized by an increase of Streptococcus and a decrease of Prevotella _9; additionally, compared to NMOSD patients, Prevotella _9 was found to be much more abundant in MS patients. (2) A striking depletion of fecal acetate, propionate, and butyrate was observed in MS patients compared to HCs. (3) The abundance of Streptococcus was negatively correlated with the proportion of pTregs ( P P Prevotella _9 was negatively correlated with the Th17 cell frequency ( P P Conclusions Gut dysbiosis and a lack of SCFAs exist in Chinese MS patients, which might be related to an aberrant immune response of MS; this relationship may have a diagnostic and therapeutic value for patients with MS.