Alpha Diversity
Alpha diversity, measured by the Observed species, Chao1, Shannon,
Simpson, ACE and Pielou index, was described in the methods. The indices
of bacterial alpha diversity were listed in Table 3.
The
Observed species,
Chao1
and ACE (which calculate alpha diversity measures of richness) were much
higher in the moderate/severe cohort (Figure 1A, Observed species,P =0.044;
Figure 1B, Chao1, P = 0.023; Figure 1C, ACE, P = 0.010).
The Shannon index (Figure 1D, P = 0.015) and Simpson
(Figure
1E, P = 0.024) illustrated the bacterial diversity was markedly
lower in the mild symptoms patients. However, the Pielou index (Figure
1F, P = 0.064) indicated that there was no significant difference
in bacterial evenness between the two groups.
The
Observed species, Chao1, ACE, and Shannon’s Indices were significantly
correlated to OABSS of the overall participant population (Figure 2A, B,
C, D), and Simpson’s Index (Figure 2E) approached significance for this
trend; however, there was no correlation with Pielou’s values (Figure
2F). Therefore, OAB scores correlated with richness, but not evenness.