Göçer Safiye, Arı Oğuz, Göçer Celil, Durmaz Rıza
Department of Medical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Lokman Hekim University, Ankara, Turkey.
Central Research and Application Center, Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Ankara, Turkey.
Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol. 2025 Sep;196:112487. doi: 10.1016/j.ijporl.2025.112487. Epub 2025 Jul 16.
Otitis media with effusion (OME) is one of the most common causes of reversible hearing loss in childhood. In recent years, host-microbiota interactions and alterations in microbiota composition associated with health and disease have gained increasing attention in the context of OME. This study aimed to investigate the bacterial microbiota composition of middle ear cavity (MEC) samples obtained from pediatric patients with and without OME. Microbiome differences were analyzed according to clinical groups and variables such as age and gender.
16S rRNA-based metagenomic sequencing was performed on MEC samples (n = 80) and nasopharyngeal samples (n = 20) obtained from 80 children-40 diagnosed with bilateral or unilateral OME (OME group) and 40 undergoing cochlear implant surgery without any history of otitis media (control group). The study cohort included 37 males and 43 females, aged between 2 and 11 years (mean age: 5.2 years).
Sequencing analysis revealed that the phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria were dominant in MEC samples. In the OME group, Firmicutes were significantly more abundant, whereas Proteobacteria levels were reduced. At the genus level, Alloiococcus was significantly enriched in the OME group, while genera considered potentially protective, such as Lactobacillus and Propionibacterium, were significantly decreased. Age was not significantly associated with microbial richness or evenness, suggesting stability of microbiota composition across age groups. However, a significantly higher relative abundance of Ralstonia was observed in female patients, suggesting that gender-related hormonal or immunological differences may influence the middle ear microbiota.
This study identifies a distinct microbiota profile associated with OME and suggests that host factors, particularly gender, may contribute to shaping the microbial and immunological landscape of the middle ear. These findings also indicate that the microbial environment in OME may shift toward a low-diversity, pathobiont-dominant state.
分泌性中耳炎（OME）是儿童可逆性听力损失的最常见原因之一。近年来，宿主-微生物群相互作用以及与健康和疾病相关的微生物群组成变化在OME背景下受到越来越多的关注。本研究旨在调查从患有和未患有OME的儿科患者获得的中耳腔（MEC）样本的细菌微生物群组成。根据临床分组以及年龄和性别等变量分析微生物组差异。
对从80名儿童获得的MEC样本（n = 80）和鼻咽样本（n = 20）进行基于16S rRNA的宏基因组测序，其中40名儿童被诊断为双侧或单侧OME（OME组），40名接受人工耳蜗植入手术且无中耳炎病史（对照组）。研究队列包括37名男性和43名女性，年龄在2至11岁之间（平均年龄：5.2岁）。
测序分析显示，厚壁菌门和变形菌门在MEC样本中占主导地位。在OME组中，厚壁菌门明显更为丰富，而变形菌门水平降低。在属水平上，Alloiococcus在OME组中显著富集，而被认为具有潜在保护作用的属，如乳酸杆菌属和丙酸杆菌属，则显著减少。年龄与微生物丰富度或均匀度无显著相关性，表明微生物群组成在各年龄组中具有稳定性。然而，在女性患者中观察到罗尔斯通氏菌的相对丰度显著更高，表明与性别相关的激素或免疫差异可能影响中耳微生物群。
本研究确定了与OME相关的独特微生物群特征，并表明宿主因素，特别是性别，可能有助于塑造中耳的微生物和免疫格局。这些发现还表明，OME中的微生物环境可能会转向低多样性、致病菌主导的状态。
