Abstract
Graves’ disease (GD) is an autoimmune disorder that frequently results in hyperthyroidism and other symptoms. Here, we designed a 6-month study with patients divided into three treatment groups, namely, methimazole (MI, n = 8), MI + black bean (n = 9) and MI + probiotic Bifidobacterium longum (n = 9), to evaluate the curative effects of probiotics supplied with MI on thyroid function of patients with GD through clinical index determination and intestinal microbiota metagenomic sequencing. Unsurprisingly, MI intake significantly improved several thyroid indexes but not the most important thyrotropin receptor antibody (TRAb), which is an indicator of the GD recurrence rate. Furthermore, we observed a dramatic response of indigenous microbiota to MI intake, which was reflected in the ecological and evolutionary scale of the intestinal microbiota. In contrast, we did not observe any significant changes in the microbiome in the MI + black bean group. Similarly, the clinical thyroid indexes of patients with GD in the probiotic supplied with MI treatment group continued to improve. Dramatically, the concentration of TRAb recovered to the healthy level. Further mechanistic exploration implied that the consumed probiotic regulated the intestinal microbiota and metabolites. These metabolites impacted neurotransmitter and blood trace elements through the gut-brain axis and gut-thyroid axis, which finally improved the host’s thyroid function.
Highlights
Graves’ disease (GD) is an autoimmune disorder that frequently results in hyperthyroidism and other symptoms
The present study extended our understanding of the mechanism of the probiotic Bifidobacterium longum supplied with MMI in regulating the gut microbiota and reducing the recurrence rate in patients with GD and developed a potential useful therapy for Graves’ disease based on the intestinal microbiota regulation
Graves’ disease (GD) is an autoimmune disorder that frequently results in hyperthyroidism and other symptoms, such as irritability, insomnia, diarrhoea, and weight loss[3]
Summary
This observation was confirmed by dynamics in microbial alpha diversity, and no significant differences were found in the Shannon or Simpson indexes among samples at the last time points (Fig. 5a). After confirming that the probiotics were able to regulate the intestinal microbiome and improve thyroid function of patients with GD, we were eager to explore the potential mechanism underlying the interaction between the probiotics and thyroid clinical indexes To address this question, we constructed a network including the probiotic Bifidobacterium longum, probiotic closely related metagenomic species (r > 0.4), SCFAs, dopamine, bile acid, blood trace elements, and thyroid functional indexes based on the determined Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients (Fig. 8a). Function and reduced the concentration of TRAb, which was an indicator of GD relapse rates
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