Interestingly, the high-HE-risk consortium Methylobacterium extorquens/Stenotrophomonas pavanii in the peripheral blood was positively correlated with the MELD score (rmean = 0.48/Pmean = 9.6*10−3) and portal proinflammatory cytokines (TNFα r = 0.40/P = 0.03; IL1β r = 0.49/P = 0.007) (Fig. 4C). This evidence concerns the gene TNF and hereditary elliptocytosis.