Gut microbiota composition and frailty in elderly patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Background: Frailty is common in older patients affected by chronic kidney disease (CKD). Since gut microbiota (gMB) may contribute to frailty, we explored possible associations between gMB and frailty in CKD. Methods: We studied 64 CKD patients (stage 3b-4), categorized as frail (F, 38) and not frail (NF, 26) according to Fried criteria, and 15 controls (C), all older than 65 years. In CKD we assessed serum C-reactive protein, blood neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, Malnutrition-inflammation Score (MIS); gMB was studied by denaturing gel gradient electrophoresis (DGGE), high-throughput sequencing (16S ribosomal RNA), and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Results: No differences in alpha and beta diversity between CKD and C and between F and NF patients emerged, but high-throughput sequencing showed significantly higher abundance of potentially noxious bacteria (Citrobacter, Coprobacillus, etc) and lower abundance of saccharolytic and butyrate-producing bacteria (Prevotella, F. prausnitzii, Roseburia), in CKD respect to C. Mogibacteriaceae and Oscillospira abundance was positively related to inflammatory indices in the whole CKD cohort, while that of Akkermansia, Ruminococcus and Eubacterium was negatively related. Compared with NF, in F there was a higher abundance of some bacteria (Mogibacteriacee, Coriobacteriacee, Eggerthella, etc), many of which have been described as more abundant in other diseases. Conclusions: These results suggest that inflammation and frailty could be associated to gMB modifications in CKD.