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. 2020 Feb 14;9(2):518.
doi: 10.3390/jcm9020518.

Altered Gut Microbial Fermentation and Colonization with Methanobrevibacter smithii in Renal Transplant Recipients

Tim J Knobbe  1 , Rianne M Douwes  1 , Daan Kremer  1 , J Casper Swarte  1   2 , Michele F Eisenga  1 , António W Gomes-Neto  1 , Marco van Londen  1 , Frans T M Peters  2 , Hans Blokzijl  2 , Ilja M Nolte  3 , Wouter H Hendriks  4 , Hermie J M Harmsen  5 , Stephan J L Bakker  1
Affiliations

Altered Gut Microbial Fermentation and Colonization with Methanobrevibacter smithii in Renal Transplant Recipients

Tim J Knobbe et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Renal transplant recipients (RTRs) often suffer from posttransplant diarrhea. The observed dysbiosis in RTR may influence the fermentation processes in the gut. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether fermentation differs between RTRs and healthy controls (HCs), by measuring breath H2 and CH4 concentrations. Additionally, we determined the fecal presence of the methanogen Methanobrevibacter smithii (M. smithii), which plays a main role in the process of methanogenesis. Data from the TransplantLines Biobank and Cohort Study (NCT03272841) was used. A total of 142 RTRs and 77 HCs were included. Breath H2 concentrations in RTRs were not significantly different from HCs. Breath CH4 concentrations in RTRs were significantly lower compared with HCs (median [interquartile range (IQR)] 7.5 [3.9-10.6] ppm vs. 16.0 [8.0-45.5] ppm, p < 0.001). M. smithii was less frequently present in the feces of RTRs compared to HCs (28.6% vs. 86.4% resp., p < 0.001). Our findings regarding the altered methanogenesis in the gut of RTRs show similarities with previous results in inflammatory bowel disease patients. These findings provide novel insight into the alterations of fermentation after renal transplantation, which may contribute to understanding the occurrence of posttransplant diarrhea.

Keywords: Methanosphaera stadtmanae; methanogenesis; mucins; posttransplant diarrhea; sulfate-reducing bacteria.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funder had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Consort flow diagram. Abbreviations: CH4, methane; H2, hydrogen; M. smithii, Methanobrevibacter smithii.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Scatterplot of log10 breath H2 and CH4 concentration by presence of M. smithii in feces. There is a difference between the relation between H2 and CH4 in subjects with and without M. smithii. Abbreviations: CH4, methane; H2, hydrogen; M. smithii, Methanobrevibacter smithii. N = 121. Pearson correlation in the absence of M. smithii, r = 0.88, p < 0.001. Pearson correlation in the presence of M. smithii, r = 0.09, p = 0.5.
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