Abstract
Platelet count reflects the severity and prognosis of multiple diseases. Additionally, alterations in gut microbiota are also linked to several chronic diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between gut microbiota and platelet count. We selected 1,268 subjects with fecal 16S RNA sequencing data from a Healthcare Screening Center cohort. Based on the third quartile of platelets (277 x 109/L), we compared the gut microbiota between the upper quartile (n=321) and lower three quartile groups (n=947). The upper quartile group had lower diversity indexes based on observed OTUs (84.5 ± 44.1 [upper] vs. 92.3 ± 43.9 [lower], q=0.004) and phylogenetic diversity (13.9 ± 3.3 vs. 14.6 ± 3.5, q<0.001) than the lower three quartiles group. Significant differences were also found in the weighted UniFrac (q=0.001) and Jaccard (q=0.047) beta diversity measures between the two groups. Compared with the lower quartiles group, the upper quartile group had decreased relative abundances of the family Ruminococcaceae, the genus Faecalibacterium, and the species Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, which also inversely correlated with the platelet count. Increased platelet count was associated with reduced diversity in gut microbiota and lower abundances of beneficial bacteria such as F. prausnitzii, suggesting that an increased platelet count even in the normal range may adversely affect gut microbial diversity and composition. Funding Statement: This research was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2016R1A6A3A11932719), the Ministry of Science and ICT (NRF-2018R1D1A1B07050067). The study was also supported by an NRF grant funded by the Korean government (MSIT) (2010-0027945). Declaration of Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. Ethics Approval Statement: Demographic data, laboratory findings, and past medical and diet histories were retrospectively reviewed through medical records and questionnaires taken at the time of sample collection. This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Kangbuk Samsung Hospital (KBSMC 2013- 01-245-12) and written informed consent was provided by all subjects.
Highlights
Humans consistently interact with their microbiota, which is defined as the collection of microorganisms living inside and on the human body
Platelet count was inversely correlated with the relative abundance of Faecalibacterium prausnitzii; the sole known species of Faecalibacterium is one of the major butyrate producers of gut microbiota [45]
Elevated platelet counts are related to prognosis in diabetic patients [50,51], in whom the abundance of F. prausnitzii is lower compared with non-diabetic patients and inversely correlated with inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) and hs-CRP [52]
Summary
Humans consistently interact with their microbiota, which is defined as the collection of microorganisms living inside and on the human body. The bacteria of the microbiota and their genomes are collectively referred to as the microbiome [1,2]. Humans consistently interact with their microbiota, which is defined as the collection of Jm. Cilcinr.oMoredg.a2n01i9s,m8,s23l0iving inside and on the human body. The bacteria of the microbiota and2tohfe1i3r genomes are collectively referred to as the microbiome [1,2]. The human gut contains the greatest nnuummbbeerraannddddeennssiittyyooffbbaacctteerriiaaiinntthheehhuummaannbbooddyy,,aannddiittssmmiiccrroobbiioottaaiisshhoosstt--ssppeecciifificcbbaasseeddoonnhheerriittaabbllee ccoommppoonneennttss[[33]]aannddisims modoifdieifidebdybaycqauciqreudirfeadctofarsctsourcshsauscdhieats, ddriuegt,s,dsruurggse,rys,uarngderayg,inangd[4a–g7i]n. Tmhiecrgoubtiomtaicrpolbaiyostaipmlapyosrtiamnpt orrotalenst rionletshien tdheevdeelovpemloepnmt eannt dandprporgorgersessiosinonoof fnnuummeerroouuss mmeeddiiccaall ccoonnddiittiioonnss,, iinncclluuddiinngg oobbeessiittyy [[88]],, iinnflflaammmmaattoorryy bboowweell ddiisseeaassee ((IIBBDD)) [[99]],, ccaarrddiioovvaassccuullaarr ddiisseeaassee [[1100,,1111]],, aannddnneeuurrooddeeggeenneerraattiivvee ddiisseeaasseess [[1122]].
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