Significant Microbial Changes Are Evident in the Reproductive Tract of Pregnant Rhesus Monkeys at Mid-Gestation but Their Gut Microbiome Does Not Shift until Late Gestation

Abstract

Vaginal and rectal specimens were obtained from cycling, pregnant, and nursing rhesus monkeys to assess pregnancy-related changes in the commensal bacteria in their reproductive and intestinal tracts. Using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, significant differences were found only in the vagina at mid-gestation, not in the hindgut. To verify the apparent stability in gut bacterial composition at mid-gestation, the experiment was repeated with additional monkeys, and similar results were found with both 16S rRNA gene amplicon and metagenomic sequencing. A follow-up study investigated if bacterial changes in the hindgut might occur later in pregnancy. Gravid females were assessed closer to term and compared to nonpregnant females. By late pregnancy, significant differences in bacterial composition, including an increased abundance of 4 species of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium adolescentis, were detected, but without a shift in the overall community structure. Progesterone levels were assessed as a possible hormone mediator of bacterial change. The relative abundance of only some taxa (e.g., Bifidobacteriaceae) were specifically associated with progesterone. In summary, pregnancy changes the microbial profiles in monkeys, but the bacterial diversity in their lower reproductive tract is different from women, and the composition of their intestinal symbionts remains stable until late gestation when several Firmicutes become more prominent.

Dynamics of the Gut Microbiota and Faecal and Serum Metabolomes during Pregnancy—A Longitudinal Study

“…Some microorganisms can increase sex steroid levels through enterohepatic circulation [ 43 ], and Nuriel-Ohayon et al found that progesterone modulates the pregnancy-associated gut microbial composition [ 44 ]. We found that the serum progesterone concentration was strongly positively correlated with the abundances of the Lachnospiraceae FCS020 group and Sphingomonas, which is consistent with a previous report [ 45 ]. Additionally, the abundance of Ruminococcaceae UCG-013 was strongly correlated with the concentration of the serum 17α-hydroxyprogesterone level.…”