Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context

Summary: Background: Large-scale multicentre studies are needed to understand complex relationships between the gut microbiota, health and disease. Interrogating the mucosal microbiota may identify important biology not captured by stool analysis. Gold standard tissue cryopreservation (‘flash freez...

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Main Authors: Nicola J. Wyatt, Hannah Watson, Gregory R. Young, Mary Doona, Ned Tilling, Dean Allerton, Andrea C. Masi, Tariq Ahmad, Jennifer A. Doyle, Katherine Frith, Ailsa Hart, Victoria Hildreth, Peter M. Irving, Claire Jones, Nicholas A. Kennedy, Sarah Lawrence, Charlie W. Lees, Robert Lees, Trevor Liddle, James O. Lindsay, Julian R. Marchesi, Miles Parkes, Nick Powell, Natalie J. Prescott, Tim Raine, Jack Satsangi, Kevin Whelan, Ruth Wood, Andrew King, Luke Jostins-Dean, R. Alexander Speight, Naomi McGregor, Christopher J. Stewart, Christopher A. Lamb
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Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-02-01
Series:EBioMedicine
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005863
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author Nicola J. Wyatt
Hannah Watson
Gregory R. Young
Mary Doona
Ned Tilling
Dean Allerton
Andrea C. Masi
Tariq Ahmad
Jennifer A. Doyle
Katherine Frith
Ailsa Hart
Victoria Hildreth
Peter M. Irving
Claire Jones
Nicholas A. Kennedy
Sarah Lawrence
Charlie W. Lees
Robert Lees
Trevor Liddle
James O. Lindsay
Julian R. Marchesi
Miles Parkes
Nick Powell
Natalie J. Prescott
Tim Raine
Jack Satsangi
Kevin Whelan
Ruth Wood
Andrew King
Luke Jostins-Dean
R. Alexander Speight
Naomi McGregor
Christopher J. Stewart
Christopher A. Lamb
author_facet Nicola J. Wyatt
Hannah Watson
Gregory R. Young
Mary Doona
Ned Tilling
Dean Allerton
Andrea C. Masi
Tariq Ahmad
Jennifer A. Doyle
Katherine Frith
Ailsa Hart
Victoria Hildreth
Peter M. Irving
Claire Jones
Nicholas A. Kennedy
Sarah Lawrence
Charlie W. Lees
Robert Lees
Trevor Liddle
James O. Lindsay
Julian R. Marchesi
Miles Parkes
Nick Powell
Natalie J. Prescott
Tim Raine
Jack Satsangi
Kevin Whelan
Ruth Wood
Andrew King
Luke Jostins-Dean
R. Alexander Speight
Naomi McGregor
Christopher J. Stewart
Christopher A. Lamb
author_sort Nicola J. Wyatt
collection DOAJ
description Summary: Background: Large-scale multicentre studies are needed to understand complex relationships between the gut microbiota, health and disease. Interrogating the mucosal microbiota may identify important biology not captured by stool analysis. Gold standard tissue cryopreservation (‘flash freezing’) limits large-scale study feasibility. We aimed to compare gut microbiota in gold standard and pragmatic mucosal biopsy storage conditions. Methods: We collected endoscopic recto-sigmoid biopsies from 20 adults with inflammatory bowel disease. Biopsies were preserved using three methods: (i) flash freezing (most proximal and distal biopsy sites); (ii) nucleic acid preservative reagents (QIAGEN Allprotect®, Invitrogen RNAlater™, and Zymo DNA/RNA Shield™); and (iii) formalin fixation with paraffin embedding (FFPE), which is used to preserve tissue for clinical histopathology within healthcare settings. Microbiota were sequenced on the MiSeq platform (V4 region, 16S rRNA gene). Findings: Tissue microbiota were consistent between most proximal and distal tissue suggesting any within-patient variation observed reflected storage condition, not biopsy location. There was no significant difference in alpha-diversity or microbial community profiles of reagent-preserved versus gold standard tissue. FFPE community structure was significantly dissimilar to other tissue samples, driven by differential relative abundance of obligate gut anaerobes; Faecalibacterium, Anaerostipes and Lachnospiraceae. Despite these differences, tissue microbiota grouped by participant regardless of preservation and storage conditions. Interpretation: Preservative reagents offer a convenient alternative to flash freezing tissue in prospective large-scale mucosal microbiota studies. Whilst less comparable, FFPE provides potential for retrospective microbiota studies using historical samples. Funding: Medical Research Council (MR/T032162/1) and The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (G-2002-04255).
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spelling doaj-art-ae405a42171a4f22bd811dcbd8a50f8a2025-08-20T02:53:15ZengElsevierEBioMedicine2352-39642025-02-0111210555010.1016/j.ebiom.2024.105550Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in contextNicola J. Wyatt0Hannah Watson1Gregory R. Young2Mary Doona3Ned Tilling4Dean Allerton5Andrea C. Masi6Tariq Ahmad7Jennifer A. Doyle8Katherine Frith9Ailsa Hart10Victoria Hildreth11Peter M. Irving12Claire Jones13Nicholas A. Kennedy14Sarah Lawrence15Charlie W. Lees16Robert Lees17Trevor Liddle18James O. Lindsay19Julian R. Marchesi20Miles Parkes21Nick Powell22Natalie J. Prescott23Tim Raine24Jack Satsangi25Kevin Whelan26Ruth Wood27Andrew King28Luke Jostins-Dean29R. Alexander Speight30Naomi McGregor31Christopher J. Stewart32Christopher A. Lamb33Translational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom; Department of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter, United Kingdom; Exeter Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Pharmacogenetics Research Group, University of Exeter, Exeter, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, St Marks Hospital and Academic Institute, Gastroenterology, London, United Kingdom; Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College, London, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences, King's College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Histopathology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter, United Kingdom; Exeter Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Pharmacogenetics Research Group, University of Exeter, Exeter, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomInstitute of Genetics & Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom; Edinburgh IBD Unit, Western General Hospital, NHS Lothian, Edinburgh, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomResearch Informatics Team, Clinical Research, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Barts Health NHS Trust, The Royal London Hospital, London, United Kingdom; Centre for Immunobiology, Blizard Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, United KingdomDivision of Digestive Diseases, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, St Mary's Hospital, Imperial College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, United KingdomDivision of Digestive Diseases, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, St Mary's Hospital, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Gastroenterology, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, United KingdomDepartment of Medical and Molecular Genetics, King's College London, Guy's Hospital, London, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, United KingdomNuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Old Road Campus, Oxford, United KingdomDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, King's College London, London, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomDepartment of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomKennedy Institute of Rheumatology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom; Department of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomNewcastle Clinical Trials Unit (NCTU), Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomTranslational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom; Department of Gastroenterology, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom; Corresponding author. M3.054, William Leech Building, Translational & Clinical Research Institute, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, United Kingdom.Summary: Background: Large-scale multicentre studies are needed to understand complex relationships between the gut microbiota, health and disease. Interrogating the mucosal microbiota may identify important biology not captured by stool analysis. Gold standard tissue cryopreservation (‘flash freezing’) limits large-scale study feasibility. We aimed to compare gut microbiota in gold standard and pragmatic mucosal biopsy storage conditions. Methods: We collected endoscopic recto-sigmoid biopsies from 20 adults with inflammatory bowel disease. Biopsies were preserved using three methods: (i) flash freezing (most proximal and distal biopsy sites); (ii) nucleic acid preservative reagents (QIAGEN Allprotect®, Invitrogen RNAlater™, and Zymo DNA/RNA Shield™); and (iii) formalin fixation with paraffin embedding (FFPE), which is used to preserve tissue for clinical histopathology within healthcare settings. Microbiota were sequenced on the MiSeq platform (V4 region, 16S rRNA gene). Findings: Tissue microbiota were consistent between most proximal and distal tissue suggesting any within-patient variation observed reflected storage condition, not biopsy location. There was no significant difference in alpha-diversity or microbial community profiles of reagent-preserved versus gold standard tissue. FFPE community structure was significantly dissimilar to other tissue samples, driven by differential relative abundance of obligate gut anaerobes; Faecalibacterium, Anaerostipes and Lachnospiraceae. Despite these differences, tissue microbiota grouped by participant regardless of preservation and storage conditions. Interpretation: Preservative reagents offer a convenient alternative to flash freezing tissue in prospective large-scale mucosal microbiota studies. Whilst less comparable, FFPE provides potential for retrospective microbiota studies using historical samples. Funding: Medical Research Council (MR/T032162/1) and The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (G-2002-04255).http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005863Inflammatory bowel diseasePrecision medicineGut microbiomeTissue microbiomeTissue preservative reagentsFormalin fixed paraffin embedded
spellingShingle Nicola J. Wyatt
Hannah Watson
Gregory R. Young
Mary Doona
Ned Tilling
Dean Allerton
Andrea C. Masi
Tariq Ahmad
Jennifer A. Doyle
Katherine Frith
Ailsa Hart
Victoria Hildreth
Peter M. Irving
Claire Jones
Nicholas A. Kennedy
Sarah Lawrence
Charlie W. Lees
Robert Lees
Trevor Liddle
James O. Lindsay
Julian R. Marchesi
Miles Parkes
Nick Powell
Natalie J. Prescott
Tim Raine
Jack Satsangi
Kevin Whelan
Ruth Wood
Andrew King
Luke Jostins-Dean
R. Alexander Speight
Naomi McGregor
Christopher J. Stewart
Christopher A. Lamb
Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
EBioMedicine
Inflammatory bowel disease
Precision medicine
Gut microbiome
Tissue microbiome
Tissue preservative reagents
Formalin fixed paraffin embedded
title Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
title_full Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
title_fullStr Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
title_full_unstemmed Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
title_short Evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large-scale mucosal microbiota researchResearch in context
title_sort evaluation of intestinal biopsy tissue preservation methods to facilitate large scale mucosal microbiota researchresearch in context
topic Inflammatory bowel disease
Precision medicine
Gut microbiome
Tissue microbiome
Tissue preservative reagents
Formalin fixed paraffin embedded
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005863
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