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. 2015 May 20;10(5):e0126980.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0126980. eCollection 2015.

Reduced bacterial colony count of anaerobic bacteria is associated with a worsening in lung clearance index and inflammation in cystic fibrosis

Katherine O'Neill  1 , Judy M Bradley  2 , Elinor Johnston  1 , Stephanie McGrath  3 , Leanne McIlreavey  3 , Stephen Rowan  1 , Alastair Reid  4 , Ian Bradbury  2 , Gisli Einarsson  1 , J Stuart Elborn  1 , Michael M Tunney  3
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Free PMC article

Reduced bacterial colony count of anaerobic bacteria is associated with a worsening in lung clearance index and inflammation in cystic fibrosis

Katherine O'Neill et al. PLoS One. .
Free PMC article

Abstract

Anaerobic bacteria have been identified in abundance in the airways of cystic fibrosis (CF) subjects. The impact their presence and abundance has on lung function and inflammation is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the colony count of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, lung clearance index (LCI), spirometry and C-Reactive Protein (CRP) in patients with CF. Sputum and blood were collected from CF patients at a single cross-sectional visit when clinically stable. Community composition and bacterial colony counts were analysed using extended aerobic and anaerobic culture. Patients completed spirometry and a multiple breath washout (MBW) test to obtain LCI. An inverse correlation between colony count of aerobic bacteria (n = 41, r = -0.35; p = 0.02), anaerobic bacteria (n = 41, r = -0.44, p = 0.004) and LCI was observed. There was an inverse correlation between colony count of anaerobic bacteria and CRP (n = 25, r = -0.44, p = 0.03) only. The results of this study demonstrate that a lower colony count of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria correlated with a worse LCI. A lower colony count of anaerobic bacteria also correlated with higher CRP levels. These results indicate that lower abundance of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria may reflect microbiota disruption and disease progression in the CF lung.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors declare the following competing interests: Prof Michael M Tunney: Grants: NHS R&D, MRC, ECFP7. Member of the PLOS ONE Editorial Board. Prof Stuart Elborn: Consultancy for Novartis and Gilead. Grants: NHS R&D, MRC, Gilead. ECFP7. Prof Judy Bradley: Grants: NHS R&D, MRC, CSP, NICHSA. This does not alter the authors' adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Total colony count, aerobic colony count and anaerobic colony count of bacteria in sputum from CF patients and control subjects.
(Median).
Fig 2
Fig 2. Relationship between LCI and a) total colony count b) aerobic colony count and c) anaerobic colony count.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Relationship between FEV1 z-score and a) total colony count b) aerobic colony count and c) anaerobic colony count.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Relationship between anaerobic and aerobic colony count and LCI in CF patients with a) chronic P. aeruginosa infection and b) without P. aeruginosa infection.
Fig 5
Fig 5. Relationship between colony count of anaerobic bacteria and CRP.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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Grants and funding

This work was funded by HSC Research and Development, Public Health Agency, Northern Ireland and the Medical Research Council through a US-Ireland Partnership Grant. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.