Subclinical alteration of the cervical–vaginal microbiome in women with idiopathic infertility

Abstract

Biomarkers have a wide application in research and clinic, they help to choose the correct treatment for diseases. Recent studies, addressing the vaginal microbiome using next generation sequencing (NGS), reported the involvement of bacterial species in infertility. We compared the vaginal microbiome of idiopathic infertile women with that of healthy, including bacterial vaginosis affected women and non-idiopathic infertile women, to identify bacterial species suitable as biomarkers. Information on microorganisms was obtained from the V3-16S rDNA sequencing of cervical-vaginal fluids of 96 women using the Ion Torrent platform. Data were processed with QIIME and classified against the Vaginal 16S rDNA Reference Database. The analysis revealed a significant beta-diversity variation (p < 0.001) between the four groups included in the study. L. iners, L. crispatus, and L. gasseri distinguished idiopathic infertile women from the other groups. In these women, a microbial profile similar to that observed in bacterial vaginosis women has been detected. Our results suggest that the quantitative assessment and identification of specific microorganisms of the cervical-vaginal microflora could increase the accuracy of available tools for the diagnosis of infertility and improve the adoption of therapeutic protocols.

Bacterial vaginosis and its association with infertility, endometritis, and pelvic inflammatory disease

“…ajog.org idiopathic infertility has been linked to a unique vaginal bacterial signature that includes bacteria related to BV. 37,38 Because of the heterogeneity seen in studies reporting BV prevalence in infertile populations, it may also be of use to look at metaanalysis results. In a systematic review and metaanalysis of studies assessing BV and infertility, BV was 3.3 times more likely to be identified in infertile women than in antenatal women within the same population.…”

Microbiota and Human Reproduction: The Case of Female Infertility

“…Accordingly, an increasing number of studies is highlighting a correlation between infertility and the microbiota [ 4 , 63 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 ]. Indeed, it has been described that infertile women host a different microbiota, both in the lower and/or in the upper reproductive system, with respect to fertile women [ 4 , 63 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 ]. Campisciano et al analyzed the vaginal microbiome of idiopathic infertile women to highlight specific alterations with respect to that of healthy, bacterial-vaginosis-affected, and non-idiopathic infertile women [ 75 ].…”

Deciphering the effect of reproductive tract microbiota on human reproduction

“…Evidence from several groups indicates that infertile patients harbor a differential reproductive tract microbiota (lower and/or upper) compared to healthy and fertile women . Thus, it is worth considering whether IVF outcomes could be influenced by the microbial taxa present in the reproductive tract during infertility treatment.…”