Mechanistic Insights into a Self-Management Intervention in Young Adults with IBS: A Pilot Multi-Omics Study, 2025, Wu

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https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/13/9/2102

Mechanistic Insights into a Self-Management Intervention in Young Adults with Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Pilot Multi-Omics Study​

by
Weizi Wu
1,
Jie Chen
2,
Aolan Li
3,
Ming-Hui Chen
3,
Angela Starkweather
4and
Xiaomei Cong
1,*<i></i>



1
Yale School of Nursing, Orange, CT 06477, USA
2
College of Nursing, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
3
Department of Statistics, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
4
Division of Nursing Science, Rutgers School of Nursing, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Biomedicines 2025, 13(9), 2102; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13092102
Submission received: 4 July 2025 / Revised: 20 August 2025 / Accepted: 21 August 2025 / Published: 28 August 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms in Gastrointestinal Tract Disease)

Abstract​

Background:

Self-directed lifestyle modifications are essential for managing symptoms in individuals diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This study incorporated longitudinal multi-omics profiling to estimate the mechanisms underlying responses to a nurse-led person-centered self-management intervention in young adults with IBS.

Methods:

This pre-post study was nested within a 12-week parent randomized controlled trial (NCT03332537). Biospecimens (stool and blood) and clinical outcomes were collected at baseline and post-intervention. Symptoms were assessed using the Brief Pain Inventory and PROMIS® short forms. Host transcriptomic profiling was performed using RNA sequencing, and gut microbial composition was analyzed via 16S rRNA sequencing. Host transcriptomic co-expression and microbial co-abundance modules were identified via weighted gene co-expression network analysis. Associations between multi-omics modules and symptoms were evaluated using linear mixed-effect models.

Results:

Among the 20 participants, most were non-Hispanic (75%), White (75%), and female (65%). The intervention significantly reduced self-reported pain severity (p = 0.019) and pain interference (p = 0.013). Decreased associations were observed between pain phenotypes and a microbial module enriched in core metabolic pathways (interference: β = −4.7, p < 0.001; severity: β = −2.4, p = 0.02). Anxiety strengthened associations with host transcriptomic cellular energy metabolism pathways post-intervention (p < 0.05). The intervention attenuated associations between fatigue, sleep disturbance, and immune–inflammatory transcriptomic and microbial adaptation modules (p < 0.05).

Conclusions:

Findings suggest that the IBS self-management intervention induces symptom-specific biological responses, implicating distinct host–microbe pathways. Larger longitudinal studies are warranted to validate these omics-based symptom signatures.

Keywords:
irritable bowel syndrome; multi-omics; self-management intervention; precision medicine

1. Introduction​