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. 2016 Feb;120(2):452-9.
doi: 10.1111/jam.13022.

Different subtype strains of Akkermansia muciniphila abundantly colonize in southern China

X Guo  1 , J Zhang  1 , F Wu  1 , M Zhang  1 , M Yi  2 , Y Peng  1
Affiliations

Different subtype strains of Akkermansia muciniphila abundantly colonize in southern China

X Guo et al. J Appl Microbiol. 2016 Feb.

Abstract

Aim: This study investigates the colonization rate of Akkermansia muciniphila in the gastrointestinal tracts of people living in southern China and applies a modified method for the isolation and subtyping of A. muciniphila strains from faecal samples.

Methods and results: Fresh faecal samples were collected and bacterial DNA was extracted from these samples for real-time PCR analysis. Strains were separated using a culture-dependent sPCR-directed method and classified using an enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC-PCR) DNA fingerprinting method. The colonization rate for the sample population from southern China was 51·74%. We isolated 22 strains from human faeces. The results revealed that all strains were identifiable as A. muciniphila with 99-100% identity to the type-strain ATCC BAA-835. ERIC-PCR resulted in grouping of the DNA fingerprints showed that 12 distinct clusters were distinguished with a delineation level of 100%.

Conclusions: Southern China has a high rate of A. muciniphila colonization and over 12 different subtype strains reside in faecal samples.

Significance and impact of the study: Akkermansia muciniphila has a beneficial role in human gastrointestinal tract. These studies provide a better understanding of A. muciniphila and details of its colonization in the human gastrointestinal tract.

Keywords: Akkermansia muciniphila; ERIC-PCR; colonization rate; real-time PCR; subtyping.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Colonization rate and quantity of Akkermansia muciniphila. Due to non‐normal distribution, microbial data are expressed as the median, with interquartile ranges in parentheses. (a) (log [no. of A. muciniphila cells] g−1 faeces) in five different age groups; (b) Scatter‐spot distribution of (log [no. A. muciniphila cells] g−1 faeces). (c) Number of positive and negative subjects and the colonization rate in the five different age groups; (formula image) positive, (formula image) negative. (d) Scatter‐spot distribution of (log [no. of total bacteria] g−1 faeces). *Significant differences (P < 0·05) and **Significant differences (P < 0·01) were determined by a Mann–Whitney U‐test.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Lane 1–23 correspond to NO.1–23 in Table 3. MW: marker lane, DL2000 DNA Marker. N, negative control lane.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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