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Background   Blastocystis  is a protist that lives in the intestinal tract of a variety of hosts, including humans. It is still unclear how  Blastocystis  causes disease, which presents an ongoing challenge for researchers. Despite the controversial findings on the association between  Blastocystis  and clinical digestive manifestations, there is currently no consensus as to whether this protozoan actually behaves as a pathogen in humans. Furthermore, the relationship between  Blastocystis  and the intestinal microbiota composition is not yet clear. For that reason, the aim of this study was to identify if colonization by  Blastocystis  is related to changes in the diversity and relative abundance of bacterial communities, compared with those of  Blastocystis -free individuals in a group of Colombian children.    Methods  We took stool samples from 57 school-aged children attending a daycare institution in Popayán (Southwest Colombia). Whole DNA was extracted and examined by  16S -rRNA amplicon-based sequencing.  Blastocystis  was detected by real time PCR and other intestinal parasites were detected by microscopy. We evaluated if  Blastocystis  was associated with host variables and the diversity and abundance of microbial communities.    Results  The composition of the intestinal bacterial community was not significantly different between  Blastocystis -free and  Blastocystis -colonized children. Despite this, we observed a higher microbial richness in the intestines of children colonized by  Blastocystis , which could, therefore, be considered a benefit to intestinal health. The phylum Firmicutes was the predominant taxonomic unit in both groups analyzed. In  Blastocystis -free individuals, there was a higher proportion of Bacteroidetes; similarly, in children colonized by  Blastocystis , there was a higher relative abundance of the phylum Proteobacteria; however, no statistically significant differences were found between the comparison groups.    Conclusions  The presence of  Blastocystis  showed a decrease in  Bacteroides , and an increase in the relative abundance of the genus  Faecalibacterium . It was also evident that the presence of  Blastocystis  was unrelated to dysbiosis at the intestinal level; on the contrary, its presence did not show statistically differences in the intestinal microbiota composition. Nevertheless, we believe that  Blastocystis  plays a role in the ecology of the intestinal microbiota through its interaction with other microbial components.

Microbiota characterization in Blastocystis-colonized and Blastocystis-free school-age children from Colombia