Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2020 Jan;111:104469. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.104469.Epub 2019 Oct 3.

Laura M Mackner ¹, Emmanuel Hatzakis ², Jacob M Allen ³, Ronald H Davies ³, Sandra C Kim ⁴, Ross M Maltz ⁵, Michael T Bailey ⁶

Author information

• ¹Center for Biobehavioral Health, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, 43205, United States; Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43210, United States.
• ²Department of Food Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43205, United States.
• ³Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States.
• ⁴Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 1522, United States.
• ⁵Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43210, United States; Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States; Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States; Oral and GI Research Affinity Group, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States.
• ⁶Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH, 43210, United States; Center for Microbial Pathogenesis, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States; Oral and GI Research Affinity Group, Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH 43205, United States. Electronic address: Michael.bailey2@nationwidechildrens.org.

Abstract

Stress is associated with increased Crohn's Disease (CD) activity. This pilot study tested whether pediatric patients with CD reporting higher levels of perceived stress exhibited differences in the fecal microbiome and metabolome. The perceived stress scale (PSS) questionnaire was administered within 2 days of collecting a stool sample for microbiome (using 16S rRNA gene sequencing) and metabolome (using NMR metabolomics) analyses. Higher levels of perceived stress were correlated with increased disease activity on the short Pediatric Crohn's Disease Activity Index (sPCDAI). Patients with High PSS scores vs. Low PSS scores based on a median split had significantly lower relative abundances of Firmicutes and Anaerostipes, as well as higher relative abundances of Parabacteroides. Fecal alanine and nicotinate were also significantly different in patients with High vs. Low PSS Scores. This pilot study suggests that the fecal microbiome and metabolome differs in pediatric patients with CD and high perceived stress.