A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 16S rRNA and Cancer Microbiome Atlas Datasets to Characterize Microbiota Signatures in Normal Breast, Mastitis, and Breast Cancer

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dc.contributor.authorRad, S.K.
dc.contributor.authorYeo, K.K.L.
dc.contributor.authorWu, F.
dc.contributor.authorLi, R.
dc.contributor.authorNourmohammadi, S.
dc.contributor.authorTomita, Y.
dc.contributor.authorPrice, T.J.
dc.contributor.authorIngman, W.V.
dc.contributor.authorTownsend, A.R.
dc.contributor.authorSmith, E.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractThe breast tissue microbiome has been increasingly recognized as a potential contributor to breast cancer development and progression. However, inconsistencies in microbial composition across studies have hindered the identification of definitive microbial signatures. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 11 studies using 16S rRNA sequencing to characterize the bacterial microbiome in 1260 fresh breast tissue samples, including normal, mastitis-affected, benign, cancer-adjacent, and cancerous tissues. Studies published until 31 December 2023 were included if they analyzed human breast tissue using Illumina short-read 16S rRNA sequencing with sufficient metadata, while non-human samples, non-breast tissues, non-English articles, and those lacking metadata or using alternative sequencing methods were excluded. We also incorporated microbiome data from The Cancer Genome Atlas breast cancer (TCGA-BRCA) cohort to enhance our analyses. Our meta-analysis identified Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteriota, and Bacteroidota as the dominant phyla in breast tissue, with Staphylococcus and Corynebacterium frequently detected across studies. While microbial diversity was similar between cancer and cancer-adjacent tissues, they both exhibited a lower diversity compared to normal and mastitis-affected tissues. Variability in bacterial genera was observed across primer sets and studies, emphasizing the need for standardized methodologies in microbiome research. An analysis of TCGA-BRCA data confirmed the dominance of Staphylococcus and Corynebacterium, which was associated with breast cancer proliferationrelated gene expression programs. Notably, high Staphylococcus abundance was associated with a 4.1-fold increased mortality risk. These findings underscore the potential clinical relevance of the breast microbiome in tumor progression and emphasize the importance of methodological consistency. Future studies to establish causal relationships, elucidate underlying mechanisms, and assess microbiome-targeted interventions are warranted.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilitySima Kianpour Rad, Kenny K. L. Yeo, Fangmeinuo Wu, Runhao Li, Saeed Nourmohammadi, Yoko Tomita, Timothy J. Price, Wendy V. Ingman, Amanda R. Townsend, and Eric Smith
dc.identifier.citationMicroorganisms, 2025; 13(2):467-1-467-24
dc.identifier.doi10.3390/microorganisms13020467
dc.identifier.issn2076-2607
dc.identifier.issn2076-2607
dc.identifier.orcidLi, R. [0000-0001-5577-049X]
dc.identifier.orcidNourmohammadi, S. [0000-0002-9469-2874]
dc.identifier.orcidTomita, Y. [0000-0001-7934-2203]
dc.identifier.orcidPrice, T.J. [0000-0002-3922-2693]
dc.identifier.orcidIngman, W.V. [0000-0003-3116-2902]
dc.identifier.orcidTownsend, A.R. [0000-0003-3563-4719]
dc.identifier.orcidSmith, E. [0000-0003-2958-3492]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/146066
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherMDPI AG
dc.rights© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/4.0/).
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13020467
dc.subjectmicrobiota; microbiome; bacterial community; 16S rRNA; 16S rRNA sequencing; breast cancer; mastitis; human; systematic review; meta-analysis
dc.titleA Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 16S rRNA and Cancer Microbiome Atlas Datasets to Characterize Microbiota Signatures in Normal Breast, Mastitis, and Breast Cancer
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished online

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