Table 4. Functional profile of the gut microbiota from NASH or F ≥2 patients.
KEGG pathways were inferred from 16s rRNA gene sequences using PICRUSt. Functional categories significantly enriched or depleted in NASH patients or patients with F ≥2 fibrosis were assessed with LEfSE (p ≤0.05, LDA >2). NASH and F ≥2 fibrosis were associated with microbiota enrichment in KEGG categories related to metabolic functions.
| KO functional categories |
NASH vs no NASH |
F ≥2 vs F0/1 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 2 | Level 3 | LDA | p-value | LDA | p-value |
| Biosynthesis of Other Secondary Metabolites | Phenylpropanoid biosynthesis | 2.34 | 0.03 | - | - |
| Carbohydrate metabolism | Glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism | 2.28 | 0.03 | 2.28 | 0.02 |
| Carbohydrate metabolism | Pentose and glucuronate interconversions | - | - | 2.74 | 0.02 |
| Carbohydrate metabolism | Pentose phosphate pathway | - | - | 2.44 | 0.01 |
| Carbohydrate metabolism | Starch and sucrose metabolism | 2.68 | 0.01 | - | - |
| Carbohydrate metabolism | Unclassified | 2.22 | 0.02 | 2.27 | 0.01 |
| Lipid Metabolism | Fatty acid biosynthesis | - | - | 2.10 | 0.03 |
| Lipid Metabolism | Lipid biosynthesis proteins | - | - | 2.07 | 0.03 |
| Lipid Metabolism | Sphingolipid metabolism | 2.45 | 0.04 | - | - |
| Metabolism of Other Amino Acids | Cyanoamino acid metabolism | 2.27 | 0.03 | - | - |
| Translation | Translation factors | - | - | −2.25 | 0.05 |
| Replication and repair | DNA replication proteins | - | - | −2.55 | 0.04 |