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Updated: Jun 20, 2025
Guided Protocol for Fecal Microbial Characterization by 16S rRNA-Amplicon Sequencing
Published on: March 19, 2018
Characteristics of gut microbiome in patients with pediatric solid tumor
Xiaoran Du1, Xu Cui1, Rongrong Fan1
1Pediatric Surgery Department, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.
Insights
Pediatric solid tumor patients show distinct gut microbiome differences compared to healthy children. Key bacterial groups like Bacilli and Enterococcus are elevated, while others are reduced, offering new insights into pediatric cancer research.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Oncology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Pediatric solid tumors (PST) are a significant childhood malignancy.
- The gut microbiome's role in adult tumors is established, but its impact on pediatric cancers is understudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate and characterize the differences in intestinal microbiota composition between pediatric solid tumor patients and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 23 PST patients and 20 healthy controls (HCs).
- Collected 43 stool samples for analysis.
- Performed 16S rRNA sequencing to profile the gut microbiota.
Main Results:
- PST patients exhibited altered gut microbial diversity and composition compared to HCs.
- Significant enrichment of *Bacilli* and *Enterococcus* was observed in PST patients.
- Reduced abundance of genera including *Lachnospiraceae unclassified*, *Lachnospira*, *Haemophilus*, and *Colidextribacter* was noted in PST patients.
Conclusions:
- This study provides the first characterization of gut microbiota in pediatric solid tumor patients.
- Significant differences in gut microbiota composition exist between PST patients and healthy children.
- These findings highlight the potential role of the gut microbiome in pediatric solid tumors.
Background:
Pediatric solid tumors are a common malignant disease in children, and more and more studies have proved that there is an inseparable relationship between adult tumors and intestinal microbiome, but the changes in the intestinal microbiota of pediatric solid tumor (PST) patients have been scarcely examined. This study aims to examine the differences in the intestinal microbiota features between patients diagnosed with PST and healthy controls (HCs).
Methods:
To elucidate the unique characteristics of the gut microbiota in pediatric patients with solid tumors, we recruited 23 PST patients and 20 HCs. A total of 43 stool samples were gathered, and then 16S rRNA sequencing was performed.
Results:
We noticed a noticeable pattern of elevated diversity in the gut microbiota within the PST groups. The differences in microbial communities among two groups were remarkable, regarding the analysis at the class level, the abundance of Bacilli was markedly increased in PST patients compared to HCs (P < 0.05), regarding the analysis at the genus level, The presence of Enterococcus was significantly higher in PST cases compared to HCs (P < 0.01), while Lachnospiraceae unclassified, Lachnospira, Haemophilus and Colidextribacter in PST cases, the abundance was significantly reduced. (P < 0.05), 6 genera, including Bacilli, Lactobacillales, Enterococcaceae and Morganella, showed a significant enrichment compared to healthy controls, while 10 genera, including Bilophila, Colidextribacter, Pasteurellales, Haemophilus, Lachnospiraceae unclassified, Lachnospira and Fusobacteriales, were significant reduction in the PST groups.
Conclusion:
Our research conducted the characterization analysis of the gut microbiota in PST patients for the first time. More importantly, there are some notable differences in the gut microbiota between PST patients and healthy controls, which we believe is an interesting finding.
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