title: Gut microbiota composition and relapse risk in pediatric MS: A pilot study.
abstract: We explored the association between baseline gut microbiota (16S rRNA biomarker sequencing of stool samples) in 17 relapsing-remitting pediatric MS cases and risk of relapse over a mean 19.8 months follow-up. From the Kaplan-Meier curve, 25% relapsed within an estimated 166 days from baseline. A shorter time to relapse was associated with Fusobacteria depletion (p=0.001 log-rank test), expansion of the Firmicutes (p=0.003), and presence of the Archaea Euryarchaeota (p=0.037). After covariate adjustments for age and immunomodulatory drug exposure, only absence (vs. presence) of Fusobacteria was associated with relapse risk (hazard ratio=3.2 (95% CI: 1.2-9.0), p=0.024). Further investigation is warranted. Findings could offer new targets to alter the MS disease course.
authors.affiliation: University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Electronic address: helen.tremlett@ubc.ca.
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tremlett
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Douglas W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Fadrosh
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Ali A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Faruqi
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Janace
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.affiliation: University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States.
authors.forename: Shelly
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Roalstad
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Graves
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Waubant
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D000069196:Gastrointestinal Microbiome / Q000502:physiology*; D005819:Genetic Markers / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020529:Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012008:Recurrence; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers
keywords: 16S rRNA; Cox regression; Gut microbiota; Kaplan-Meier; Pediatric multiple sclerosis; Relapse risk; Survival analyses