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Updated: Sep 30, 2025
Murine Fecal Isolation and Microbiota Transplantation
Published on: May 26, 2023
Exploring blood microbial communities and their influence on human cardiovascular disease
Ikram Khan1, Imran Khan2, Zhou Jianye3
1School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.
Insights
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is linked to blood microbiome changes. Specific bacteria like Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria are associated with increased CVD risk, suggesting a role for blood dysbiosis.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Cardiology
- Genomics
Background:
- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of global mortality, encompassing conditions like atherosclerosis and heart failure.
- Beyond traditional factors, the blood microbiome is increasingly studied in chronic inflammatory diseases, including CVD.
- Systemic bacterial exposure markers are linked to noncommunicable diseases, particularly CVD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the association between the blood microbiome and cardiovascular disease (CVD).
- To explore the role of specific bacterial phyla in CVD development and risk.
- To assess the potential of blood microbiota as biomarkers for CVD.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive literature review was conducted.
- Searches were performed in major electronic databases: PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science.
- Relevant original research studies were identified using specific keywords.
Main Results:
- Elevated markers of systemic bacterial exposure correlate with CVD.
- In healthy blood, bacterial DNA is primarily from Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria.
- Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria proportions increase in cardiac events like stroke and myocardial infarction.
- Lipopolysaccharides from Proteobacteria are implicated in CVD onset.
- Reduced cholesterol-degrading bacteria (e.g., Caulobacterales) are observed in myocardial infarction.
Conclusions:
- Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria are independent risk markers for CVD.
- Blood microbiota dysbiosis is a novel concept in CVD pathogenesis.
- Further research is needed to clarify the inconsistent associations between blood microbiota and CVD.
Background:
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the single biggest contributor to global mortality. CVD encompasses multiple disorders, including atherosclerosis, hypertension, platelet hyperactivity, stroke, hyperlipidemia, and heart failure. In addition to traditional risk factors, the circulating microbiome or the blood microbiome has been analyzed recently in chronic inflammatory diseases, including CVD in humans.
Methods:
For this review, all relevant original research studies were assessed by searching in electronic databases, including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science, by using relevant keywords.
Results:
This review demonstrated that elevated markers of systemic bacterial exposure are associated with noncommunicable diseases, including CVD. Studies have shown that the bacterial DNA sequence found in healthy blood belongs mainly to the Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria phyla. In cardiac events, such as stroke, coronary heart disease, and myocardial infarction, the increased proportion of Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria phyla was found. Lipopolysaccharides are a major component of Proteobacteria, which play a key role in the onset of CVD. Moreover, recently, a study reported the lower cholesterol-degrading bacteria, including Caulobacterales order and Caulobacteraceae family were both considerably reduced in myocardial infarction.
Conclusion:
Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria were shown to be independent markers of the risk of CVD. This finding is evidence for the new concept of the role played by blood microbiota dysbiosis in CVD. However, the association between blood microbiota and CVD is still inconsistent. Thus, more deep investigations are required in future to fully understand the role of the bacteria community in causing and preventing CVD.
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