Multi-omics analysis reveals associations between gut microbiota and host transcriptome in colon cancer patients.

Abstract

Colon cancer (CC) is one of the most common cancers globally, which is associated with the gut microbiota intimately. In current research, exploring the complex interaction between microbiomes and CC is a hotspot. However, the information on microbiomes in most previous studies is based on fecal, which does not fully display the microbial environment of CC. Herein, we collected mucosal and tissue samples from both the tumor and normal regions of 19 CC patients and clarified the composition of mucosal microbiota by 16S rRNA and metagenomic sequencing. Additionally, RNA-Seq was also conducted to identify the different expression genes between tumor and normal tissue samples. We revealed significantly different microbial community structures and expression profiles to CC. Depending on correlation analysis, we demonstrated that 1,472 genes were significantly correlated with CC tumor microbiota. Our study reveals a significant enrichment of Campylobacter jejuni in the mucosa of CC, which correlates with bile secretion. Additionally, we observe a negative correlation between C. jejuni and immune cells CD4+ Tem and mast cells. Finally, we discovered that metabolic bacterial endosymbiont of Bathymodiolus sp., Bacillus wiedmannii, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis had a significant survival value for CC, which was ignored by previous research. Overall, our study expands the understanding of the complex interplay between microbiota and CC and provides new targets for the treatment of CC.

Importance: This study contributes to our understanding of the interaction between microbiota and colon cancer (CC). By examining mucosal and tissue samples rather than solely relying on fecal samples, we have uncovered previously unknown aspects of CC-associated microbiota. Our findings reveal distinct microbial community structures and gene expression profiles correlated with CC progression. Notably, the enrichment of Campylobacter jejuni in CC mucosa, linked to bile secretion, underscores potential mechanisms in CC pathogenesis. Additionally, observed correlations between microbial taxa and immune cell populations offer new avenues for immunotherapy research in CC. Importantly, this study introduces CC-associated microbiota with survival implications for CC, expanding therapeutic targets beyond conventional strategies. By elucidating these correlations, our study not only contributes to uncovering the potential role of gut microbiota in colon cancer but also establishes a foundation for mechanistic studies of gut microbiota in colon cancer, emphasizing the broader impact of microbiota research on cancer biology.