Disturbed gut virome with potent interferonogenic property in systemic lupus erythematosus

Beidi Chen; Jiabao Cao; Wei Liu; Yuqing Zhang; Yudong Liu; Min Wang; Fei Xiao; Jie Ma; Jun Wang; Xuan Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.scib.2023.01.021

Disturbed gut virome with potent interferonogenic property in systemic lupus erythematosus

Sci Bull (Beijing). 2023 Feb 15;68(3):295-304. doi: 10.1016/j.scib.2023.01.021. Epub 2023 Jan 18.

Authors

Beidi Chen¹, Jiabao Cao², Wei Liu³, Yuqing Zhang², Yudong Liu³, Min Wang³, Fei Xiao⁴, Jie Ma⁴, Jun Wang⁵, Xuan Zhang⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Rheumatology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China; Division of Rheumatology and Immunology, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing 100191, China.
² CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
³ Department of Rheumatology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China.
⁴ The Key Laboratory of Geriatrics, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, National Health Commission, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Beijing Institute of Geriatrics, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China.
⁵ CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. Electronic address: junwang@im.ac.cn.
⁶ Department of Rheumatology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730, China. Electronic address: zxpumch2003@sina.com.

PMID: 36697300
DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2023.01.021

Abstract

Accumulating evidence suggests an essential role of disturbed gut microbiota in the etiopathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), but it remains unclear as to gut virome. In this study, fecal virus-like particles (VLPs) isolated from 76 non-treated SLE patients and 75 healthy controls were subjected to gut virome profiling. The proportion of bacteriophages was significantly elevated in the SLE gut, and the altered viral taxa were correlated with clinical parameters. Gut virome and bacteriome were closely associated with each other in SLE patients. The combination of gut viral and bacterial markers displayed better performance in distinguishing SLE patients from healthy controls. Further, VLPs from non-treated SLE patients promoted interferon-α production in an epithelial cell line and human immune cells. Intriguingly, the interferon-stimulatory capacity diminished in VLPs from post-treated SLE patients. Our findings may shed novel insights into SLE pathogenesis. Further in-depth understanding of gut virome might help develop future biomarkers and therapeutics for SLE patients.

Keywords: Gut virome; Interferon-α; Systemic lupus erythematosus; Virus-like particles.

MeSH terms

Bacteria
Feces / microbiology
Gastrointestinal Microbiome*
Humans
Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic*
Virome