Limited studies have investigated the microbial colonization of the airways and intestines in preterm neonates. We studied the composition of intestinal and airway bacterial colonies in several preterm twin pairs and singletons to explore the dominant bacteria, assess their variability, and predict their phenotypic and metabolic functions. In this descriptive study, we collected sputum and fetal stool specimens from 10 twin pairs (20 cases) and 20 singleton preterm neonates. These specimens were analyzed using 16S rRNA deep sequencing to study the alpha and beta diversities and community structures of airway and intestinal bacteria and predict their metabolic functions. Specimens from twins and singleton neonates had distinct aggregations of intestinal and airway bacteria but showed similarities and high microbial diversities during initial colonization. The top five phyla were Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteriota, Bacteroidota, and Cyanobacteria. The top ten genera were Streptococcus, Acinetobacter, Ralstonia, Staphylococcus, Comamonas, Enterococcus, Stenotrophomonas, Dechlorosoma, Sphingopyxis, and Rothia. Potentially pathogenic and highly stress-tolerant Gram-negative bacteria were predominant in the intestinal flora. A considerable proportion of colonies recovered from the airway and intestines of preterm neonates were functional bacteria. The richness of the intestinal and airway flora was not significantly different between twins and singletons, and the flora clustered together. Both intestinal and airway bacteria of twins and singletons were similar. The species involved in initial colonization were similar but different in proportions; therefore, changes in microbial structure and richness may not be attributed to these species.

中文翻译：

---

双胎和单胎早产儿呼吸道和肠道的细菌定植：单中心研究

有限的研究调查了早产儿呼吸道和肠道的微生物定植。我们研究了几对早产双胞胎和单胎的肠道和呼吸道细菌菌落的组成，以探索优势细菌，评估其变异性，并预测其表型和代谢功能。在这项描述性研究中，我们收集了 10 对双胞胎（20 例）和 20 名单胎早产新生儿的痰液和胎儿粪便标本。使用16S rRNA深度测序对这些标本进行分析，以研究气道和肠道细菌的α和β多样性以及群落结构，并预测它们的代谢功能。来自双胞胎和单胎新生儿的样本具有不同的肠道和气道细菌聚集，但在最初的定植过程中表现出相似性和高度的微生物多样性。排名前五的门是变形菌门、厚壁菌门、放线菌门、拟杆菌门和蓝细菌门。排名前10位的属为链球菌属、不动杆菌属、拉尔斯通氏菌属、葡萄球菌属、丛毛单胞菌属、肠球菌属、寡养单胞菌属、脱氯体菌属、鞘氨醇单胞菌属和罗氏菌属。肠道菌群中以潜在致病性和高度耐应激的革兰氏阴性菌为主。从早产儿气道和肠道中回收的菌落中有相当一部分是功能性细菌。双胞胎和单胎之间肠道和气道菌群的丰富度没有显着差异，并且菌群聚集在一起。双胞胎和单胎的肠道和呼吸道细菌相似。最初殖民的物种相似，但比例不同；因此，微生物结构和丰富度的变化可能不能归因于这些物种。