Assessing the Concordance Between Urogenital and Vaginal Microbiota: Can Urine Specimens Be Used as a Proxy for Vaginal Samples?

BackgroundThe vaginal microbiota play a key role in defense against reproductive tract infections; however, many population-based women’s health studies do not collect vaginal samples. Molecular examinations of urine samples have revealed common vaginal bacteria. We sought to assess the extent that community state type assignments of archived random-catch and clean-catch urine samples agreed with the paired vaginal samples in both reproductive-age and peri/post-menopausal women.ResultsUsing archived samples, we evaluated the microbiota concordance among women in three studies: two with paired mid-vaginal/random-catch urine (N=91 reproductive-age participants and N=13 peri/post-menopausal participants), and one with paired mid-vaginal/clean-catch urine (N=99 reproductive-age participants). Microbiota composition was characterized by sequencing amplicons of the 16S rRNA gene V3-V4 regions and assigned to community state types. Similarity of paired samples was gauged using agreement of community state types and Yue-Clayton θ indices. Analysis of Composition of Microbiomes II indicated which taxa were differently relatively abundant in paired vaginal and urine samples. In reproductive-age women, random-catch and clean-catch urines were 89.0% and 86.9% concordant on five community state types with paired mid-vaginal swabs, and Kappa statistics indicated almost perfect agreement (κrandom-catch=.85, κclean-catch=.81, p<0.0001). A small number of pairs of samples were discordant (23/190, 12%), and discordant pairs tended to be between samples classified to L. iners-dominated and/or low-Lactobacillus states. Concordance and agreement remained similar when dichotomizing the microbiota to Lactobacillus-dominated versus low-Lactobacillus microbiota, as well as when evaluating separately the three subtypes of the low-Lactobacillus community state type IV. Median similarity of paired urine/vaginal samples was high (θrandom-catch=.85, θclean-catch=.88), and a comparison of the random-catch and clean-catch similarity scores showed no significant difference (p=.80). Concordance and similarity were lower for peri/post-menopausal women, but agreement remained substantial (76.9% concordant, κrandom-catch= 0.64, θrandom-catch=.62). Taxonomic-level analysis confirmed these findings.ConclusionsRandom-catch and clean-catch urine samples showed substantial agreement on bacterial composition to paired mid-vaginal samples, indicating that the genitourinary microbiota may be a reliable proxy for assessing the overall composition of the vaginal microbiota via community state types. This data suggests that urine samples can, with proper interpretation, be utilized as a surrogate for developing preliminary data and hypothesis-generating studies.

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Changes in the vaginal microbiota associated with primary ovarian failure

10.21203/rs.3.rs-15522/v2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Juan Wang ◽

Jieying Xu ◽

Qixin Han ◽

Weiwei Chu ◽

Gang Lu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ribosomal Rna ◽

Relative Abundance ◽

Illumina Miseq ◽

Vaginal Flora ◽

Vaginal Microbiota ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Healthy Individuals ◽

Women Of Reproductive Age ◽

Menopausal Women

Abstract Background: Primary ovary failure (POF) is defined as follicular failure in women of reproductive age. Although many factors are speculated to contribute to the occurrence of POF, the exact aetiology is unclear. Alterations in the microbiome of women with POF are poorly studied; Methods: This study investigated the vaginal microbiota of 22 patients with POF and 29 healthy individuals. High-throughput Illumina Miseq sequencing targeting the V3-V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene was used to evaluate the relationships between vaginal flora and clinical characteristics of POF. Results: Different from before, we found that the diversity and richness of the vaginal flora of patients with POF was significantly different from that of healthy controls. Comparison of the flora of patients with POF with that of menopausal women revealed that the relative abundance of Lactobacillus was significantly reduced in the latter, and women with reduced relative abundance of Lactobacillus in microbiota community decreased the pregnancy success rate at term. The result suggests the present study enabled identification of microbiota associated with POF, further investigations of differences in the microbiota in the context of POF will improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of the disease which involve modification of the vaginal microbiota. Conclusion: The present study identified the microbiota associated with POF. Further investigations on the differences in the microbiota in the context of POF will improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of the disease which involves modification of the vaginal microbiota.

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Changes in the vaginal microbiota associated with primary ovarian failure

10.21203/rs.3.rs-15522/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Juan Wang ◽

Jieying Xu ◽

Qixin Han ◽

Weiwei Chu ◽

Gang Lu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Relative Abundance ◽

Clinical Characteristics ◽

Illumina Miseq ◽

Vaginal Flora ◽

Vaginal Microbiota ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Accurate Information ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Menopausal Women ◽

Verification Model

Abstract Background Primary ovary failure (POF) is defined as follicular failure in women of reproductive age. Although many factors are speculated to contribute to the occurrence of POF, the exact aetiology is unclear. Alterations in the microbiome of women with POF are poorly studied; Methods This study investigated the vaginal microbiota of 22 patients with POF and 29 healthy individuals. High-throughput Illumina Miseq sequencing targeting the V3-V4 region of the 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene was used to evaluate the relationships between vaginal flora and clinical characteristics of POF. Results Different from before, we found the diversity and richness of the vaginal flora of patients with POF was significantly different to that of healthy controls. Comparison of the flora of patients POF with that of menopausal women revealed that the relative abundance of Lactobacillus was significantly reduced in the latter, and women with reduced relative abundance of Lactobacillus in microbiota community decreased the pregnancy success rate at term. This study confirms that vaginal microbiota dysbiosis occurs in patients with POF. Additionally, the vaginal microbiota is closely related to clinical characteristics of POF and the inclusion of a disease verification model could reveal more accurate information related to the composition of the microbiota and its functions. Conclusion The result suggests the present study enabled identification of microbiota associated with POF, further investigations of differences in the microbiota in the context of POF will improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of the disease which involve modification of the vaginal microbiota.

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Factors associated with the composition and diversity of the cervical microbiota of reproductive-age Black South African women: a retrospective cross-sectional study

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.7488 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

pp. e7488 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Harris Onywera ◽

Anna-Lise Williamson ◽

Zizipho Z.A. Mbulawa ◽

David Coetzee ◽

Tracy L. Meiring

Keyword(s):

South African ◽

Hormonal Contraception ◽

Vaginal Microbiota ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

African Women ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Black South African ◽

Significant Difference ◽

South African Women

Background Lactobacillus spp. are common bacteria in the cervical and vaginal microbiota (CVM) and are thought to represent a “healthy” cervicovaginal state. Several studies have found an independent association between ethnicity/race and cervical and vaginal microbiota (CVM) composition. Women of sub-Saharan African descent appear to be significantly more likely to have non-Lactobacillus-dominated CVM compared to women of European descent. The factors contributing to these differences remain to be fully elucidated. The CVM of Black South African women and factors influencing their CVM remain understudied. In this study, we characterized the cervical microbiota of reproductive-age South African women and assessed the associations of these microbiota with participants’ metadata. Methods The cervical microbiota from cervical DNA of 62 reproductive-age women were profiled by Ion Torrent sequencing the V4 hypervariable region of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene and analyzed with the Quantitative Insights Into Microbial Ecology (QIIME), UPARSE, and metagenomeSeq tools. Associations between cervical microbiota and participants’ metadata were assessed using GraphPad Prism, R packages and an in-house script. Results The cervical microbiota clustered into three distinct community state types (CSTs): Lactobacillus iners-dominated cervical microbiota (CST I (38.7%, 24/62)), unclassified Lactobacillus-dominated cervical microbiota (CST II (4.8%, 3/62)), and diverse cervical microbiota (CST III (56.5%, 35/62)) with an array of heterogeneous bacteria, predominantly the bacterial vaginosis (BV)-associated Gardnerella, Prevotella, Sneathia, and Shuttleworthia. CST III was associated with BV (p = 0.001). Women in CST I were more likely to be on hormonal contraception, especially progestin-based, compared to women in CST III (odds ratio: 5.2 (95% CI [1.6–17.2]); p = 0.005). Women on hormonal contraception had a significantly lower alpha (Shannon indices: 0.9 (0.2–1.9) versus 2.3 (0.6–2.3); p = 0.025) and beta (permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) pseudo-F statistic =4.31, p = 0.019) diversity compared to non-users. There was no significant difference in the alpha (Shannon indices: 1.0 (0.3–2.2) versus 1.9 (0.3–2.2); p = 0.483) and beta (PERMANOVA pseudo-F statistic = 0.89, p = 0.373) diversity in women with versus without human papillomavirus infection. Conclusions The majority of Black women in our study had non-Lactobacillus-dominated cervical microbiota. Additional studies are needed to examine whether such microbiota represent abnormal, intermediate or variant states of health. Lastly, the association of hormonal contraception with L. iners dominance requires further in-depth research to confirm this association, determine its biological mechanism and whether it has a beneficial effect on the cervicovaginal health.

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Effect of Menopausal Hormone Therapy on the Vaginal Microbiota and Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause in Chinese Menopausal Women

Frontiers in Microbiology ◽

10.3389/fmicb.2020.590877 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Lulu Geng ◽

Wenjun Huang ◽

Susu Jiang ◽

Yanwei Zheng ◽

Yibei Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Microbial Diversity ◽

Hormone Therapy ◽

Anaerobic Bacteria ◽

Vaginal Microbiota ◽

Menopausal Hormone Therapy ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Genitourinary Syndrome Of Menopause ◽

Menopausal Women ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Genitourinary Syndrome

Genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM) is a chronic and progressive condition with a series of vulvovaginal, sexual, and lower urinary tract discomforts, mainly due to hypoestrogenism. Menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) has generally been considered as the most effective treatment for GSM. In addition, vaginal microbiota is of particular significance to gynecological and reproductive illnesses and potentially has some intimate connections with GSM. Consequently, we sought to evaluate how MHT impacts the composition and structure of vaginal microbiota while alleviating GSM in Chinese menopausal women aged 45–65 years, which has not been investigated previously. 16S rRNA gene sequencing was performed to analyze microbial diversity and composition using vaginal swabs obtained from 100 menopausal women, classified as MHT women who have been taking tibolone regularly (n = 50) and non-treated women who never received any treatment (n = 50). Vaginal Health Index Score (VHIS) and GSM symptoms inquiry were also performed. We found that the vaginal microbial diversity decreased and that the abundance of Lactobacillus increased to be the dominant proportion significantly in the MHT group, in considerable contrast to vaginal microbiota of the non-treated group, which significantly comprised several anaerobic bacteria, namely, Gardnerella, Prevotella, Escherichia-Shigella, Streptococcus, Atopobium, Aerococcus, Anaerotruncus, and Anaerococcus. In this study, women without any MHT had significantly more severe GSM symptoms than those receiving tibolone, especially with regard to vulvovaginal dryness and burning, as well as decreased libido (P < 0.01). However, there was no significant difference in the severity of urological symptoms between the groups (P > 0.05). Furthermore, Lactobacillus was demonstrated to be associated with VHIS positively (r = 0.626, P < 0.001) and with GSM negatively (r = −0.347, P < 0.001). We also identified Chlamydia (r = 0.277, P < 0.01) and Streptococcus (r = 0.270, P < 0.01) as having a prominent association with more serious GSM symptoms. Our study provided an elucidation that MHT could notably alleviate GSM and conspicuously reshape the composition of the vaginal microbiota, which is of extreme importance to clinical practice for the management of GSM.

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Glycerol prevents loss of immunoreactive follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone from frozen urine

Journal of Endocrinology ◽

10.1677/joe.0.0980381 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 98 (3) ◽

pp. 381-384 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

J. H. Livesey ◽

H. K. Roud ◽

M. G. Metcalf ◽

R. A. Donald

Keyword(s):

Luteinizing Hormone ◽

Follicle Stimulating Hormone ◽

Urine Samples ◽

Initial Value ◽

Menopausal Women ◽

Post Menopausal ◽

Stimulating Hormone

First morning urine samples were collected from both menstruant and post-menopausal women and stored at −25 °C. Immunoreactive FSH disappeared from these samples (t½ = 30 days), ultimately stabilizing at about 20% of the initial value. The loss was more rapid at −20 °C and less rapid at −55 °C and +4°C. Immunoreactive LH was also lost from frozen urine, but more slowly than FSH. The addition of glycerol to urine (0·52 mol/l) stored at −25 °C prevented loss of immunoreactive FSH and LH for at least 105 days.

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The nasopharyngeal, ruminal, and vaginal microbiota and the core taxa shared across these microbiomes in virgin yearling heifers exposed to divergent in utero nutrition during their first trimester of gestation and in pregnant beef heifers in response to mineral supplementation

10.1101/2021.06.03.446997 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Samat Amat ◽

Devin B Holman ◽

Kaycie Schmidt ◽

Ana Clara B Menezes ◽

Friederike Baumgaertner ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mixed Model ◽

Linear Mixed Model ◽

First Trimester ◽

Nervous System Development ◽

Vaginal Microbiota ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Beef Heifers ◽

Mineral Supplement ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Significant Difference

Emerging evidence has indicated that microbial transmission from the bovine dam to her fetus may take place before birth, and that the maternal microbiota during pregnancy modulates programming of fetal metabolic and nervous system development, highlighting the potential and extended role of the maternal microbiome in calf health and development. In the present study, we characterized the nasopharyngeal, ruminal and vaginal microbiota from two cohorts of beef heifers managed at the same location: 1) virgin yearling heifers (9 months old) born from dams received gestational diets which resulted in low (LG, n = 22) or medium (MG, n = 23) weight gain during the first 84 days of gestation; and 2) pregnant replacement heifers that received a vitamin and mineral supplement (VTM, n = 17) or not (Control, n = 15) during the first 6 months of gestation. Nasopharyngeal and vaginal swabs as well as ruminal fluid were collected from both cohorts and the microbiota of each sample was assessed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. In addition to the comparison between treatment groups within each cohort, the similarity of the microbiota of the three sample types were evaluated, and shared taxa amongst these communities were identified. The bacterial genera present in the rumen and vagina that can influence methanogenic archaeal genera were predicted using a stepwise-selected generalized linear mixed model. No significant difference was observed in the alpha and beta diversity in any of the nasopharyngeal, ruminal and vaginal microbiota between LG and MG offspring virgin heifers, or between the control and VTM pregnant heifers (p > 0.05). Subtle compositional changes in the vaginal microbiota in yearling heifers, and in the nasopharyngeal and ruminal microbiota of pregnant heifers were detected in response to treatments. Forty-one archaeal and bacterial OTUs were shared by over 60% of all samples from both virgin and pregnant heifers. Two taxa within the Methanobrevibacter genus were identified as core taxa and this genus was more relatively abundant in pregnant heifers compared to virgin heifers. Among the 25 top genera, Prevotella and Prevotella UCG-003 (negative) and Christensenellaceae R-7 group (positive) were predicted to have a significant effect on ruminal Methanobrevibacter spp. The results of this study indicate that there is little impact of divergent gestational nutrition during the first trimester on the calf microbiome at 9 months postnatal, and that VTM supplementation during pregnancy may not alter the maternal microbiome. This study provides evidence that there are several microbial taxa, including methanogenic archaea, that are shared across the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and reproductive tracts, suggesting the need for a holistic evaluation of the bovine microbiota when considering potential maternal sources for seeding calves with pioneer microbiota.

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An overview of the phytoestrogen effect on vaginal health and dyspareunia in peri- and post-menopausal women

Post Reproductive Health ◽

10.1177/2053369118823365 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 25 (1) ◽

pp. 11-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Fatemeh R Dizavandi ◽

Masoumeh Ghazanfarpour ◽

Nasibeh Roozbeh ◽

Leila Kargarfard ◽

Talat Khadivzadeh ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Similar Efficacy ◽

Cochrane Central Register ◽

Vaginal Atrophy ◽

Pueraria Mirifica ◽

Menopausal Women ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Vaginal Health ◽

Post Menopausal ◽

Intermediate Cells ◽

Conjugated Estrogen

Objective The aim of this overview was to evaluate the effectiveness of phytoestrogens on vaginal health and dyspareunia in peri- and post-menopausal women. Material and methods Three databases including MEDLINE, Scopus and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were from inception to August 2017. Result Two systematic reviews and 11 RCTs were included in the overview. According to the findings, isoflavones increased the maturation value and attenuated the vaginal atrophy in the post-menopausal women. Topical isoflavones had beneficial effects on the vaginal atrophy. Similar efficacy was found in Pueraria mirifica and conjugated estrogen cream on dryness ( p = 0.277), soreness ( p = 0.124) and irritation ( p = 0.469), as well as discharge ( p = 0.225) and dyspareunia ( p = 0.089). However, the conjugated estrogen cream was more effective compared to Pueraria mirifica ( p > 0.005) regarding maturation index improvement. Comparison of fennel 5% vaginal cream and placebo gel showed significant difference in superficial cells ( p < 0.01), parabasal cells ( p < 0.01) and intermediate cells ( p < 0.01), whereas no difference was found between the oral fennel and placebo in terms of superficial, parabasal and intermediate cells as well as Maturation value. Administration of 80 mg red clover oil had a significant effect on superficial ( p < 0.005), intermediate ( p < 0.005) and parabasal and vaginal dryness ( p < 0.005) compared to the placebo. Flaxseed had also a trivial effect on maturation value. Genistein had a more prominent effect on the genital score. The severity of dyspareunia decreased by 27%. Conclusion Phytoestrogens have various effects based on administration route and type on the vaginal atrophy.

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Assessment of effectiveness of spinal exercises and body mechanics on low back pain among post menopausal women

International Journal of Advances in Scientific Research ◽

10.7439/ijasr.v1i4.2082 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 1 (4) ◽

pp. 191 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Angel Rajakumari G ◽

Soli T. K. ◽

Malathy D

Keyword(s):

Low Back Pain ◽

Back Pain ◽

Control Group ◽

Low Back ◽

Menopausal Women ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Post Test ◽

Quasi Experimental ◽

Equivalent Control ◽

Post Menopausal

Aim: To assessment of effectiveness of spinal exercises and body mechanics on low back pain among post menopausal women.Participants and setting: A quasi experimental non equivalent control group pretest post test design was adapted. The study was conducted in the urban area of suryapet. 40 post menopausal women who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were selected by nonprobability purposive sampling technique.Intervention: The intervention such as spinal exercises and body mechanics were performed to overcome the level of low back pain among post menopausal women. The pre and post assessment was done by using a combined numerical and categorical pain scale.Measurement and findings: The women completed the demographic and obstetrical information and pain was measured by 0- 10 Modified combined numerical categorical pain intensity scale. This study revealed that there was high significant difference found in low back pain at p<0.001level between study group.Conclusion: The overall findings in the present study revealed that the spinal exercises and body mechanics was effectives and had brought about significant change in the reduction of low back pain among post menopausal women compared to pre test level of low back pain.

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