“Microbiome and Mycobiome in Multiple Sclerosis”

Gut microbiota (GM) analysis is currently becoming an essential tool for a better understanding of many diseases. This complex ecosystem (that is already considered as an organ per se) is composed by trillions of microorganisms that, not only make up more than half the cellular composition of the human body, but also interact with the host and modulate numerous physiological and immune processes through the production of a vast array of byproducts. Due to the growing evidence of the capacity of GM to modulate the immune response of the host, this complex organ has been postulated as an essential player in the pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Several recent publications describe the alterations present in the GM (dysbiosis) of MS patients, most of them focused on the analysis of bacteria. However, little is known about the implication in MS of the rest of the microorganisms that compose the GM. Even if its been demonstrated that the mycobiome (fungal component of GM) is implicated in many autoimmune diseases, its role in MS has hardly been analyzed. In this context, our research has been focused on the characterization of microbiome (16S) and mycobiome (ITS) of our MS patients (and their healthy controls). Besides that, we have also carried out a correlation analysis of both taxonomic group data, with the aim of understanding the interactions between bacterial and fungal kingdom.