Critically ill patients with COVID-19 show lung fungal dysbiosis with reduced microbial diversity in patients colonized with Candida spp.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified interest in how the infection affects the lung microbiome of critically ill patients and how it contributes to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We aimed to characterize the lower respiratory tract mycobiome of critically ill patients with COVID-19 in comparison to patients without COVID-19.

Methods

We performed an internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) profiling with the Illumina MiSeq platform on 26 respiratory specimens from patients with COVID-19 as well as from 26 patients with non-COVID-19 pneumonia.

Results

Patients with COVID-19 were more likely to be colonized with Candida spp. ARDS was associated with lung dysbiosis characterized by a shift to Candida species colonization and a decrease of fungal diver

SUBMITTER: Viciani E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8828296 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature