title: Microbiomes of the normal middle ear and ears with chronic otitis media.
abstract: The aim of this study was to profile and compare the middle ear microbiomes of human subjects with and without chronic otitis media.
  
  
  
  Prospective multicenter cohort study.
  
  
  
  All consecutive patients undergoing tympanoplasty surgery for chronic otitis media or ear surgery for conditions other than otitis media were recruited. Sterile swab samples were collected from the middle ear mucosa during surgery. The variable region 4 of the 16S rRNA gene in each sample were amplified using region-specific primers adapted for the Illumina MiSeq sequencer (Illumina, CA, USA)). The sequences were subjected to local blast and classified using Metagenome@KIN (World Fusion, Tokyo, Japan).
  
  
  
  In total, 155 participants were recruited from seven medical centers. Of these, 88 and 67 had chronic otitis media and normal middle ears, respectively. The most abundant bacterial phyla on the mucosal surfaces of the normal middle ears were Proteobacteria, followed by Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and Bacteroidetes. The children and adults with normal middle ears differed significantly in terms of middle ear microbiomes. Subjects with chronic otitis media without active inflammation (dry ear) had similar middle ear microbiomes as the normal middle ears group. Subjects with chronic otitis media with active inflammation (wet ear) had a lower prevalence of Proteobacteria and a higher prevalence of Firmicutes than the normal middle ears.
  
  
  
  The human middle ear is inhabited by more diverse microbial communities than was previously thought. Alteration of the middle ear microbiome may contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic otitis media with active inflammation.
  
  
  
  2b. Laryngoscope, 127:E371-E377, 2017.
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, National Institute of Sensory Organs, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Shujiro B
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-7992-4868
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Minami
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, National Institute of Sensory Organs, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mutai
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, National Institute of Sensory Organs, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Niigata University, Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Nigata, Japan.
authors.forename: Arata
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Horii
authors.affiliation: Keio University, School of Medicine, Department of Otolaryngology, Keio, Japan.
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Oishi
authors.affiliation: Japanese Red Cross Shizuoka Hospital, Department of Otolaryngology, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Koichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wasano
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Ureshino Medical Center, Department of Otolaryngology, Ureshino, Japan.
authors.forename: Motoyasu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Katsura
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Nagasaki Medical Center, Department of Otolaryngology, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Fujinobu
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Kanazawa Medical Center, Department of Otolaryngology, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takiguchi
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, National Institute of Sensory Organs, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masato
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujii
authors.affiliation: National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, National Institute of Sensory Organs, Tokyo, Japan.|International University of Health and Welfare, Center for Speech and Hearing Disorders, Tochigi, Japan.
authors.forename: Kimitaka
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kaga
mesh_terms: D039903:Actinobacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D041963:Bacteroidetes / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004432:Ear, Middle / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D000068536:Bacillota / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D064307:Microbiota; D008875:Middle Aged; D010033:Otitis Media / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000601:surgery; D011446:Prospective Studies; D020560:Proteobacteria / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000032:analysis; D014433:Tympanoplasty; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
keywords: 16S rRNA; cholesteatoma; tympanic cavity