Microbioma is the set of microorganisms that occurs naturally in a particular site, such as the human gastrointestinal tract. Typically, it has trillions of microbes, including fungi, viruses and bacteria [1], which coexist with human cells.
Normally, the microbiome bacteria interact with the epithelial barrier, with immune cells modulating their response, in addition to influencing local metabolism through their own metabolites. This maintains homeostasis [2]. Thus, an imbalance of the microbiota, such as the use of antibiotics or due to bacterial translocation, can lead to the development of diseases. It does this through the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria, for example, which can greatly affect the host and have potential pathological implications. [2–4]
Studies have shown a close relation between dysbiosis and the outbreak of infections or chronic diseases. In 2019, Saus et al. [5] gathered data about the relation between the intestinal microbiota and the development of colorectal carcinoma (CRC), the most studied since the 1990s. Currently, it is known that in patients with this neoplasm there is a co-abundance of pro-inflammatory factors, opportunistic pathogens and other microbes. This is associated with metabolic dysfunction and the depletion of butyrate-producing bacteria, an important factor in intestinal homeostasis. With these studies, interest was raised in investigating other sites, such as the biliopancreatic tract (BPT). In 2015, Mitsuhashi et al. showed the association of the oral microbiota with the pancreatic carcinogenesis process. In periodontal diseases, Fusobacterium can be translocated via lympho-hematogenous pathways, leading to pancreatic dysbiosis. This would be associated with malignancy in the progression of pancreatic adenocarcinoma and worse prognosis. [4]
Thus, research was conducted in rats, finding an association between the components of the tumour microbiota and the speed of progression of biliopancreatic disease [6]. In pancreases of rats and humans with pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma (PDAC), a greater abundance of Malassezia spp. was found compared to bowel or pancreas controls without the disease. Due to the presence of the fungus, there is greater activation of mannose-binding lectin (MBL) and, consequently, the complement cascade is activated, leading to greater inflammation in the pancreas, which accelerates tumour progression [6, 7].
Traditionally, BPT neoplasia are diagnosed at an advanced stage, despite the improvement in the quality of diagnostic imaging. For early diagnosis, Mendez et al. conducted an experiment with PDAC-mutated mice before they developed the disease. By DNA sequencing of the fecal microbiota bacteria, it was found that, with the progression of pancreatic carcinogenesis, there was a change in the bacterial composition. The metabolites of these bacteria associated with the tumour promote greater production of polyamines, which increases as the neoplasia develops. Then, the dosage of polyamines could be used as a biomarker to track the progression of adenocarcinoma [8]. The analysis of the fecal microbiota, therefore, would be a possibility for early diagnosis of PDAC, prompting research in human patients at high risk for carcinogenesis.
Among the therapies, the most commonly used treatments for neoplasia are chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In BPT carcinomas, however, these methods have low sensitivity [9], which can be attributed, according to studies, to tumor dysbiosis. As previously mentioned, unchanged symbiotic microbiota mediates the immune response. Thus its imbalance decreases the expression of genes related to inflammation, phagocytosis, antigen presentation and adaptive immune response. On the other hand, genes related to tissue development, cancer and metabolism are stimulated [10]. Thus, the use of chemotherapeutic drugs loses effectiveness due to this negative regulation of the immune system's anti-tumor capacity. An example of this is oxaliplatin, whose effect is to stimulate the production of reactive oxygen species to promote DNA damage and tumor cell apoptosis. In mice injected with colon carcinoma cells, their cytotoxic effect decreased after being treated with antibiotics. [9, 10]
There have been several advances in the introduction of new chemical compounds that interfere in specific signalling pathways of carcinogenesis, also affected by the microbiome. Because of this association, microbial agents and their metabolites are being tested to develop treatments that can reduce the tumor and are potentially preventive [11]. This was observed in studies with species of Lactobacillus, which modulates the expression of some enzymes such as beta-glucuronidase. The action of the enzyme is reduced by bacilli. This acts in the disjunction of carcinogenic agents, converting pro-carcinogens into their active form [12]. Lenoir et al. also demonstrated that L.casei has anti-tumor properties by decreasing the T-reg response and increasing Th17, promoting a decrease in CRC in rats. Thus, the microbe proved to be a protector and a new therapeutic alternative to carcinoma. [11, 13]
Even with current treatments, mortality in some groups of BPT malignancies remains high, with low survival rates. However, in recent studies in patients with pancreatic duct adenocarcinoma, it was found that the greater variety of the tumor microbiota and the predominance of specific bacterial genera are related to a longer survival time when treated surgically [6]. Considering this recent progress, improvement is expected for the coming decades.
Thus, the performance of the microbiota is observed in all clinical and pathological stages of carcinogenesis, from its development, diagnosis and treatment, including prognosis and survival. However, there is a lack of studies on biliary microbiota and its relation with hepatobiliopancreatic diseases. Therefore, further investigation is necessary, since researching the biliary microbiota may suggest ways for studies of biomarkers, diagnoses, interventions and therapies in hepatobiliopancreatic diseases.
Aim
In this study, our aim will be to characterize the specific composition of the biliary microbiota in patients with hepatobiliopancreatic diseases compared to healthy controls, using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) pyrosequencing methods.