Aims: Lactobacilli are widely distributed in food and the environment, and some colonize the human body as commensal bacteria. The aim of this study was to determine the species of lactobacilli that colonize the vagina and compare them with those found in food and the environment. Methods and Results: Thirty‐five Lactobacillus strains from women from seven countries were isolated, and sequences from 16S rRNA genes were determined and compared with existing data in GenBank. A phylogenetic tree was achieved using the Neighbour‐Joining method based on the analysis of 1465 nucleotides. The results showed that most vaginal isolates were L. crispatus, L. jensenii and L. gasseri. Some were L. vaginalis, L. fermentum, L. mucosae, L. paracasei and L. rhamnosus. Two isolates from a native American woman displayed distinct branches, indicating novel phylotypes. Few vaginal isolates matched food or environmental Lactobacillus species. Conclusions: Most women worldwide were colonized by three common Lactobacillus species: L. crispatus, L. jensenii and L. gasseri. Significance and Impact of Study: Knowledge of vaginal Lactobacillus species richness and distribution in women worldwide may lead to the design of better probiotic products as bacterial replacement therapy.

Lactobacilli play an important role in maintaining vaginal health. However, during bacterial vaginosis lactobacilli decrease for unknown reasons. Our preliminary study showed that phages could infect vaginal lactobacilli. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze the distribution, virulence, and types of vaginal Lactobacillus phages isolated from women of two countries: the United States and Turkey. A total of 209 vaginal lactobacilli were isolated from reproductive-aged women in the United States (n ‫؍‬ 107) and Turkey (n ‫؍‬ 102). By analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequence and by comparison of protein profiles, most lactobacilli were identified as L. crispatus, L. gasseri, and L. jensenii. After mitomycin C induction, 28% of American lactobacilli and 36% of Turkish lactobacilli released phages. A total of 67 phages were isolated and further characterized by their host range, electron microscopy, and DNA homology. All 67 phages were infective against lactobacilli from both collections. The host ranges of most phages were broad, including multiple Lactobacillus species. Even though the phages were all temperate, they were able to cause lytic infection in various strains. The electron micrographs of these phages showed a hexagon-shaped head and a long tail with or without a contractile tail sheath. Based on their morphology, these phages belonged to Bradley's phage groups A and B, and could be further classified into four morphotypes. All four types were found among American phages, but only three were found among Turkish isolates. DNA hybridization with labeled probes of the four types of phages revealed that additional genetic types existed within each morphotype among these phages. The phage genomic sizes ranged between 34 and 55 kb. Many of the lysogenic Lactobacillus strains released phages spontaneously at a high frequency of 10 ؊3 to 10 ؊4 PFU/cell. In conclusion, lysogeny in vaginal lactobacilli is widely spread. Some lysogenic lactobacilli spontaneously release phages with a broad host range, which can be lytic against other vaginal lactobacilli regardless of their geographic origin.Lactobacilli indigenous to the human vagina are beneficial to women's health (35). These bacteria can inhibit other potentially harmful microorganisms by producing lactic acid, hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ), and antimicrobial substances (12,23,43). In most healthy women, lactobacilli are the dominant species in the vagina. Theoretically, the anaerobic bacteria are suppressed by lactobacilli (12, 23) and cannot replace lactobacilli unless the latter is first diminished. However, the group of anaerobic bacteria commonly outnumber lactobacilli, causing a microbial imbalance called bacterial vaginosis (BV) (3,9,10,15,38,40).BV is a clinical condition that is characterized by decreased lactobacilli and an increased number of anaerobic gram-negative rods, Gardnerella species, and genital mycoplasmas (10,38,40). Women who suffer from BV may have an increased discharge that often has an unpleasant fishy odor. BV has been associated w...

Aho cheese, a traditional Turkish dairy product, is commonly produced in the eastern Black Sea region of Anatolia. In this study, 60 samples were collected and some biochemical, microbiological and sensory qualities were investigated. The mean values for dry matter, fat, protein, salt, ash and pH were 45.04, 8.10, 26.50, 9.58, 10.64 g/100 g and 5.07, respectively. Water-soluble nitrogen (WSN), ripening index (WSN, % of TN) and acidity index were 0.59 g/100 g, 14.50% and 4.82 mg KOH/g fat, respectively. The mean values for saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acid/saturated fatty acid values were found to be 73.57, 23.08, 3.38 and 0.046 g/100 g fatty acids, respectively. Total aerobic mesophilic bacteria, yeast, mould and coliform counts were between 6.20-7.44, 4.84-6.96 and 0.00-2.45 log cfu/g, respectively.