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188 Xie et al. | Journal of Clinical and Translational Research 2024; 10(3): 180-190
and elucidating the diversity of biliary and gut microbiota in Ethical Approval and Consent to Participate
gallstone diseases may facilitate the prognosis and management
of gallstones. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Research
Nonetheless, there were several limitations in this study, Ethics Committee of Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Capital Medical
such as the small sample size. Cholecystectomy and endoscopic University (KY2020-032-02). We obtained informed consent
operations are invasive procedures, and this study did not from human patients before their participation by signing an
include bile samples from the control group for comparisons. informed consent form.
This study selectively excluded the research subjects, resulting Consent for Publication
in self-selection and sample-selection biases, thereby limiting
an accurate representation of the population. We obtained informed consent from human patients before
their participation by signing an informed consent form.
5. Conclusion
Availability of Data
The biliary tract (e.g., gallstones, bile, and gallbladder
mucosa) and gut microbiota of patients with gallstones exhibited The datasets generated during the present study are available
specific changes compared to healthy individuals, providing in the NCBI database. The raw sequence reads of this study
novel insights into the source of the biliary tract flora and the were deposited at NCBI under Bioproject with the accession
formation of gallstones. Patients with gallstones had an obvious number PRJNA 929661.
microbiota imbalance at the genus level. The diversity of gut
microbiota was higher than that of biliary microbiota among References
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feasibility of fecal microbiota transplantation for the treatment of Factors Relevant to Persistent Upper Abdominal Pain
gallstone disease. Based on the specific microbiota of gallstone after Cholecystectomy. HPB (Oxford) 2017;19:629-37.
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Acknowledgments doi: 10.1186/s12893-016-0160-3

We thank the study team, including study coordinators, [5. Wirth J, Di Giuseppe R, Wientzek A, Katzke VA,
operating nurses, physicians, data management personnel, and Kloss M, Kaaks R, et al. Presence of Gallstones and the
other support staff, for the practical arrangements of the study, Risk of Cardiovascular Diseases: The EPIC-Germany
as well as colleagues for their assistance with transporting the Cohort Study. Eur J Prev Cardiol 2015;22:326-34.
study materials. doi: 10.1177/2047487313512218
[6] Fan Y, Hu J, Feng B, Wang W, Yao G, Zhai J, et al.
Funding Increased Risk of Pancreatic Cancer Related to Gallstones
This work was supported by the Digestive Medical and Cholecystectomy: A Systematic Review and Meta-
Coordinated Development Center of the Beijing Hospitals analysis. Pancreas 2016;45:503-9.
Authority (Grant number: XXT14). doi: 10.1097/MPA.0000000000000502
Conflict of Interest [7] Singh BP, Khan WF, Rathore YS, Pol MM. Incidental
Carcinoma Gallbladder: Incidence, Risk Factors,
The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial and Factors Affecting Survival-5-Year Experience
interests to disclose. from A Tertiary Care Institute. J Gastrointest Cancer

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36922/jctr.23.00118