Changes in gut microbiota composition and diversity associated with post-cholecystectomy diarrheaOriginal paper
Karen Pendergrass is a microbiome researcher specializing in microbiome-targeted interventions (MBTIs). She systematically analyzes scientific literature to identify microbial patterns, develop hypotheses, and validate interventions. As the founder of the Microbiome Signatures Database, she bridges microbiome research with clinical practice. In 2012, based on her own investigative research, she became the first documented case of FMT for Celiac Disease, four years before the first published case study.
Read MoreWhat was studied?
Researchers examined gut microbiota composition in patients after gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy), comparing those with post-cholecystectomy diarrhea (PCD) to those without diarrhea (PCND) and to healthy controls.
How was it studied?
Fecal DNA from all three groups underwent high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Researchers compared operational taxonomic unit counts, diversity, taxa abundance, and predicted functional pathways via KEGG analysis.
What did they find?
The post-cholecystectomy group had fewer OTUs and lower diversity than healthy controls, with fifteen differentially abundant taxa. Within the PC group, PCD patients had lower diversity, a lower Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio, and reduced Bifidobacterium and Lactococcus compared to PCND patients. PCD patients showed increased Prevotella and Sutterella, and a negative correlation between Prevotella and Bifidobacterium. Lipid metabolism pathway abundances were markedly lower in PCD than PCND.
Why it matters
The findings suggest gut dysbiosis, rather than surgery alone, may drive diarrhea after gallbladder removal. This points toward microbiota-targeted approaches as potential therapeutic options for post-cholecystectomy diarrhea.