COPD肠道菌群朊病毒通路异常：补虚平喘膏干预机制解析

However, the prion disease (ko05020) pathway was significantly upregulated in the MC group, indicating a certain degree of functional dysbiosis in the gut microbiota and an increased risk of intestinal cell damage before intervention. This also provides a functional target for the intervention with Bu Xu Ping Chuan膏 (a traditional Chinese medicine). The pathway primarily involves the accumulation and aggregation of misfolded proteins, and its presence in the functional prediction of the gut microbiota can be explained in several ways: First, the enrichment of this pathway may reflect the adaptive response of the gut microbiota to oxidative stress conditions in MC group patients. COPD patients often have systemic oxidative stress, which may induce the activation of pathways related to protein misfolding in the microbiota [11]. Second, some studies suggest that certain gut bacteria can produce proteins with prion-like properties, which are involved in biofilm formation and stress tolerance [12]. Third, the enrichment of this pathway may also reflect the functional characteristics of specific bacterial genera in the MC group, such as the Escherichia-Shigella genus. Although the specific biological significance requires further validation, the significant difference in this pathway suggests differences in the microbial stress response profiles between the two groups of COPD patients.