Integrated relationship of nasopharyngeal airway host response and microbiome associates with bronchiolitis severity

Abstract

Bronchiolitis is a leading cause of infant hospitalizations but its immunopathology remains poorly understood. Here we present data from 244 infants hospitalized with bronchiolitis in a multicenter prospective study, assessing the host response (transcriptome), microbial composition, and microbial function (metatranscriptome) in the nasopharyngeal airway, and associate them with disease severity. We investigate individual associations with disease severity identify host response, microbial taxonomical, and microbial functional modules by network analyses. We also determine the integrated relationship of these modules with severity. Several modules are significantly associated with risks of positive pressure ventilation use, including the host-type I interferon, neutrophil/interleukin-1, T cell regulation, microbial-branched-chain amino acid metabolism, and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide hydrogen modules. Taken together, we show complex interplays between host and microbiome, and their contribution to disease severity.