New Insights on Polymicrobial Infections in Chronic Lung Diseases
Published:25 Jul.2024 Source:Medical University of Vienna
Chronic lung diseases are often accelerated and exacerbated by polymicrobial infections. An international study team led by MedUni Vienna has identified two types of these so-called dysbioses in cystic fibrosis. They display distinct ecology and are also likely to respond differently to treatment.
Researchers have focused on the characterization of disease-associated bacterial communities ("dysbioses") in subjects with cystic fibrosis and investigated their ecological networks. To this end, sputum samples (mucus expectorated from the lung) were collected from people with cystic fibrosis over an extended period of time, sequenced and then analyzed using computational models by Stefanie Widder (Department of Medicine I, Division of Infection Biology, MedUni Vienna). Two antagonistic types of dysbiosis were discovered, which differ fundamentally in their organization: they either form hierarchical or stochastic networks.
Moreover, the two types of dysbiosis are likely to respond differently to treatments. A simplified computer model that simulated the effect of antimicrobial drugs on pathogens predicted better efficacy with hierarchically organized microbiota.