Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.
Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Parasitology, Health Sciences Center, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA.
Vet Ophthalmol. 2024 Jul;27(4):318-329. doi: 10.1111/vop.13157. Epub 2023 Oct 24.
Feline herpesvirus 1 (FHV-1) causes ocular surface disease in domestic cats. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between bacterial ocular surface microbiota and outcomes for cats with FHV-1 ocular surface disease.
Twenty-two shelter-housed cats with confirmed FHV-1 ocular surface disease.
Animals were grouped according to FHV-1 shedding and ocular clinical scores following intervention: worsened outcome (WorOut, n = 11) or improved outcome (ImpOut, n = 11). Scoring and conjunctival sampling were completed on Days 1 and 8 of twice daily antiviral treatment. Bacterial DNA was extracted and submitted for 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was performed for selected bacterial species. Overall DNA concentration between groups was assessed.
Bacterial microbiota relative abundance composition was significantly different between ImpOut and WorOut groups (weighted UniFrac p = .006). Alpha diversity was significantly higher in the ImpOut group compared with the WorOut group (Shannon p = .042, Simpson's p = .022, Pielou's p = .037). Differences in the relative abundance of various phyla and species were detected between groups. Total DNA concentration was higher in the WorOut group compared with the ImpOut group (p = .04). Feline GAPDH (p = .001) and Bilophila wadsworthia (p = .024) copy number was significantly higher in the ImpOut group compared with the WorOut group.
The results highlight the important relationship between the bacterial ocular surface microbiota and FHV-1 infection outcomes in cats treated with antiviral medications. Low bacterial species diversity, higher overall DNA (presumed predominantly bacterial) load, and certain bacterial phyla/species were associated with poor outcomes for cats with FHV-1 ocular disease.
猫疱疹病毒 1（FHV-1）可引起家猫的眼表面疾病。本研究旨在评估患有 FHV-1 眼表面疾病的猫的细菌眼表面微生物群与结局之间的关系。
22 只确诊患有 FHV-1 眼表面疾病的收容所饲养的猫。
根据 FHV-1 脱落情况和干预后的眼临床评分将动物分为两组：病情恶化组（WorOut，n = 11）或病情改善组（ImpOut，n = 11）。在每日两次抗病毒治疗的第 1 天和第 8 天进行评分和结膜采样。提取细菌 DNA，并进行 16S rRNA 基因测序。对选定的细菌物种进行实时聚合酶链反应。评估两组之间的总 DNA 浓度。
ImpOut 组和 WorOut 组之间的细菌微生物群相对丰度组成有显著差异（加权 UniFrac p = .006）。与 WorOut 组相比，ImpOut 组的 alpha 多样性显著更高（Shannon p = .042，Simpson's p = .022，Pielou's p = .037）。两组之间检测到各种门和物种的相对丰度差异。与 ImpOut 组相比，WorOut 组的总 DNA 浓度更高（p = .04）。与 WorOut 组相比，ImpOut 组的猫 GAPDH（p = .001）和Bilophila wadsworthia（p = .024）拷贝数更高。
结果强调了在接受抗病毒药物治疗的猫中，细菌眼表面微生物群与 FHV-1 感染结局之间的重要关系。较低的细菌物种多样性、较高的总 DNA（推测主要为细菌）负荷以及某些细菌门/物种与患有 FHV-1 眼疾病的猫的不良结局相关。
