Syntrophic bacterial and host-microbe interactions in bacterial vaginosis.

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common, polymicrobial condition of the vaginal microbiota that is associated with symptoms such as malodor and excessive discharge, along with increased risk of various adverse sequelae. Host-bacteria and bacteria-bacteria interactions are thought to contribute to the condition, but many of these functions have yet to be elucidated. Using untargeted metaproteomics, we identified 1068 host and 1418 bacterial proteins in a set of cervicovaginal lavage samples collected from 20 participants with BV and 9 who were negative for the condition.

Bacterial vaginosis.

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a vaginal microbiome disorder that is associated with preterm birth and spontaneous abortion, increased risk of HIV infection and sexually transmitted infections, and has negative effects on quality of life. BV affects one in four women globally, with the highest burden in resource-limited settings. Marked alterations in vaginal microbiome composition, in pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, and in the proteome and metabolome characterize BV and contribute to adverse sequelae.

A Syntenic Pangenome for Reveals Taxonomic Boundaries and Stratification of Metabolic and Virulence Potential across Species.

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a prevalent condition associated with an imbalance in the vaginal microbiota, often involving species of . The taxonomic complexity and inconsistent nomenclature of have impeded progress in understanding the role of specific species in health and disease. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive genomic and pangenomic analysis to resolve taxonomic ambiguities and elucidate metabolic and virulence potential across species.

Bacterial Vaginosis Is Associated With Transcriptomic Changes but Not Higher Concentrations of Cervical Leukocytes in a Study of Women at High Risk for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquisition.

Background: The association between bacterial vaginosis (BV) and increased human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition risk may be related to concentrations of HIV-susceptible immune cells in the cervix.

Methods: Participants (31 with BV and 30 with normal microbiota) underwent cervical biopsy at a single visit. Immune cells were quantified and sorted using flow cytometry (n = 55), localization assessed by immunofluorescence (n = 16), and function determined by bulk RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of live CD45+ cells (n = 21).

Fannyhessea vaginae and Clearance of Lactobacillus iners Are Associated With Incident Nonchlamydial Non- Mycoplasma genitalium Urethritis in Men Who Have Sex With Women.

Background: The etiology of nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) is incompletely understood. We sought to determine if genitourinary bacterial diversity or specific taxa were associated with incident NGU.

Methods: From August 2014 to July 2018, men who have sex with women attending a sexual health clinic were clinically evaluated, including Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) testing, at enrollment and 6 monthly visits.

SurvBal: compositional microbiome balances for survival outcomes.

Summary: Identification of balances of bacterial taxa in relation to continuous and dichotomous outcomes is an increasingly frequent analytic objective in microbiome profiling experiments. SurvBal enables the selection of balances in relation to censored survival or time-to-event outcomes which are of considerable interest in many biomedical studies. The most commonly used survival models-the Cox proportional hazards and parametric survival models are included in the package, which are used in combination with step-wise selection procedures to identify the optimal associated balance of microbiome, i.

Vaginal Bacteria and Proinflammatory Host Immune Mediators as Biomarkers of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Acquisition Risk Among African Women.

Background: Few investigations have assessed contributions of both vaginal bacteria and proinflammatory immune mediators to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition risk in a prospective cohort.

Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study of African women who participated in a randomized placebo-controlled trial of daily oral versus vaginal tenofovir-based preexposure prophylaxis for HIV infection. Vaginal concentrations of 23 bacterial taxa and 16 immune mediators were measured.

Gardnerella Species and Their Association With Bacterial Vaginosis.

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a condition marked by high vaginal bacterial diversity. Gardnerella vaginalis has been implicated in BV but is also detected in healthy women. The Gardnerella genus has been expanded to encompass 6 validly named species and several genomospecies.

A prospective cohort study examining the association between the periconceptual vaginal microbiota and first-trimester miscarriage in Kenyan women.

Background: Studies evaluating the association between the vaginal microbiota and miscarriage have produced variable results.

Objective: This study evaluated the association between periconceptual and first-trimester vaginal microbiota and women's risk for miscarriage.

Methods: At monthly preconception visits and at 9-12 weeks gestation, women collected vaginal swabs for molecular characterisation of the vaginal microbiota.

Association between vaginal microbiota and vaginal inflammatory immune markers in postmenopausal women.

Objective: In premenopausal individuals, vaginal microbiota diversity and lack of Lactobacillus dominance are associated with greater mucosal inflammation, which is linked to a higher risk of cervical dysplasia and infections. It is not known if the association between the vaginal microbiota and inflammation is present after menopause, when the vaginal microbiota is generally higher-diversity and fewer people have Lactobacillus dominance.

Methods: This is a post hoc analysis of a subset of postmenopausal individuals enrolled in a randomized trial for treatment of moderate-severe vulvovaginal discomfort that compared vaginal moisturizer, estradiol, or placebo.

Effect of Metronidazole on Concentrations of Vaginal Bacteria Associated with Risk of HIV Acquisition.

Several bacterial vaginosis (BV)-associated bacteria have been associated with elevated risk of HIV acquisition, however susceptibility of these bacteria to antibiotics is poorly understood. Vaginal samples were collected from 22 persons daily for two weeks following BV diagnosis. Metronidazole treatment was prescribed for 5-7 days.

Identification of fallopian tube microbiota and its association with ovarian cancer.

Investigating the human fallopian tube (FT) microbiota has significant implications for understanding the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer (OC). In this large prospective study, we collected swabs intraoperatively from the FT and other surgical sites as controls to profile the microbiota in the FT and to assess its relationship with OC. Eighty-one OC and 106 non-cancer patients were enrolled and 1001 swabs were processed for 16S rRNA gene PCR and sequencing.

IgA coating of vaginal bacteria is reduced in the setting of bacterial vaginosis (BV) and preferentially targets BV-associated species.

Immunoglobulin (Ig) bacterial coating has been described in the gastrointestinal tract and linked to inflammatory bowel disease; however, little is known about Ig coating of vaginal bacteria and whether it plays a role in vaginal health including bacterial vaginosis (BV). We examined Ig coating in 18 women with symptomatic BV followed longitudinally before, 1 week, and 1 month after oral metronidazole treatment. Immunoglobulin A (IgA) and/or immunoglobulin G (IgG) coating of vaginal bacteria was assessed by flow cytometry, and Ig coated and uncoated bacteria were sorted and characterized using 16S rRNA sequencing.

gen. nov., sp. nov., and sp. nov., gen. nov.: novel bacteria from the family isolated from the female genital tract.

Four obligately anaerobic Gram-positive bacteria representing one novel genus and two novel species were isolated from the female genital tract. Both novel species, designated UPII 610-J and KA00274, and an additional isolate of each species were characterized utilizing biochemical, genotypic and phylogenetic analyses. All strains were non-motile and non-spore forming, asaccharolytic, non-cellulolytic and indole-negative coccobacilli.

Vaginal Bacteria Elicit Acute Inflammatory Response in Fallopian Tube Organoids.

To facilitate in vitro mechanistic studies in pelvic inflammatory disease and subsequent tubal factor infertility, we sought to establish patient tissue derived fallopian tube (FT) organoids and to study their inflammatory response to acute vaginal bacterial infection. FT tissues were obtained from four patients after salpingectomy for benign gynecological diseases. We introduced acute infection in the FT organoid culture system by inoculating the organoid culture media with two common vaginal bacterial species, Lactobacillus crispatus and Fannyhessea vaginae.

Intestinal microbiota controls graft-versus-host disease independent of donor-host genetic disparity.

Acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) remains a major limitation of allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT), and severe intestinal manifestation is the major cause of early mortality. Intestinal microbiota control MHC class II (MHC-II) expression by ileal intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) that promote GVHD. Here, we demonstrated that genetically identical mice of differing vendor origins had markedly different intestinal microbiota and ileal MHC-II expression, resulting in discordant GVHD severity.

Identification of fallopian tube microbiota and its association with ovarian cancer: a prospective study of intraoperative swab collections from 187 patients.

Investigating the human fallopian tube (FT) microbiota has significant implications for understanding the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer (OC). In this large prospective study, we collected swabs intraoperatively from the FT and other surgical sites as controls to profile the microbiota in the FT and to assess its relationship with OC. 81 OC and 106 non-cancer patients were enrolled and 1001 swabs were processed for 16S rRNA gene PCR and sequencing.

Optimizing metaproteomics database construction: lessons from a study of the vaginal microbiome.

Metaproteomics, a method for untargeted, high-throughput identification of proteins in complex samples, provides functional information about microbial communities and can tie functions to specific taxa. Metaproteomics often generates less data than other omics techniques, but analytical workflows can be improved to increase usable data in metaproteomic outputs. Identification of peptides in the metaproteomic analysis is performed by comparing mass spectra of sample peptides to a reference database of protein sequences.

Vaginal bacteria elicit acute inflammatory response in fallopian tube organoids: a model for pelvic inflammatory disease.

To facilitate mechanistic studies in pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and subsequent tubal factor infertility, as well as ovarian carcinogenesis, we sought to establish patient tissue derived fallopian tube (FT) organoids and to study their inflammatory response to acute vaginal bacterial infection. Experimental study. Academic medical and researchcenter.

Analysis of Antibiotic Exposure and Development of Acute Graft-vs-Host Disease Following Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation.

Importance: Certain antibiotic exposures have been associated with increased rates of acute graft-vs-host disease (aGVHD) after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT). Since antibiotic exposure can both affect and be affected by infections, analyzing time-dependent exposure in the presence of multiple potential confounders, including prior antibiotic exposures, poses specific analytical challenges, necessitating both a large sample size and unique approaches.

Objective: To identify antibiotics and antibiotic exposure timeframes associated with subsequent aGVHD.

Changes in Vaginal Bacteria and Inflammatory Mediators From Periconception Through the Early Postpartum Period in a Cohort of Kenyan Women Without HIV.

Background: Women's increased risk of HIV acquisition during pregnancy and postpartum may be mediated by changes in vaginal microbiota and/or cytokines.

Methods: A cohort of 80 Kenyan women who were HIV-1 seronegative contributed 409 vaginal samples at 6 pregnancy time points: periconception, positive pregnancy test result, first trimester, second trimester, third trimester, and postpartum. Concentrations of vaginal bacteria linked with HIV risk and Lactobacillus spp were measured using quantitative polymerase chain reaction.

Next generation sequencing to examine associations between vaginal washing and vaginal microbiota: A cohort study.

Background: The association between vaginal washing and HIV risk may be mediated by vaginal washing-associated changes in vaginal microbiota.

Methods: Data from a cohort of HIV-negative US and Kenyan women enrolled in the Preventing Vaginal Infections trial were analyzed. Vaginal fluid samples and vaginal washing data were collected every 2 months for 12 months.

Vaginal bacteria elicit acute inflammatory response in fallopian tube organoids: a model for pelvic inflammatory disease.

Objective: To facilitate mechanistic studies in pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) and subsequent tubal factor infertility, as well as ovarian carcinogenesis, we sought to establish patient tissue derived fallopian tube (FT) organoids and to study their inflammatory response to acute vaginal bacterial infection.

Design: Experimental study.

Setting: Academic medical and research center.