Importance of gut microbiome regulation for the prevention and recovery process after SARS-CoV-2 respiratory viral infection (Review)

Infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been reported to affect organs other than the lungs, including the liver, brain, kidneys and intestine, and gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal discomfort, have also been reported. Thus, SARS-CoV-2 could potentially directly or indirectly regulate the gut microbiome profile and its homeostasis. The abundance of Coprobacillus, Clostridium ramosum and Clostridium are associated with the severity of COVID-19, and Firmicutes, Bacteriodetes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria are also related to COVID-19 infection. The four phyla are correlated with the severity of COVID-19 infection in patients. The modulation of factors that control the physiological growth of the gut microbiome will determine the proportionate ratio of microbiome types (profile). Taken together, gut microbiome profile alterations in COVID-19 patients may have a cross effect with the modulation of cytokine levels in COVID-19 infection. With these findings, several factors that regulate gut microbiome homeostasis may support the degree of the clinical symptoms and hasten the recovery process after COVID-19 infection.