Distinct cervical tissue-adherent and luminal microbiome communities correlate with mucosal host gene expression and protein levels in Kenyan sex workers.
Microbiome
; 11(1): 67, 2023 03 31.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37004130
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The majority of studies characterizing female genital tract microbiota have focused on luminal organisms, while the presence and impact of tissue-adherent ectocervical microbiota remain incompletely understood. Studies of luminal and tissue-associated bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract suggest that these communities may have distinct roles in health and disease. Here, we performed a multi-omics characterization of paired luminal and tissue samples collected from a cohort of Kenyan female sex workers.RESULTS:
We identified a tissue-adherent bacterial microbiome, with a higher alpha diversity than the luminal microbiome, in which dominant genera overall included Gardnerella and Lactobacillus, followed by Prevotella, Atopobium, and Sneathia. About half of the L. iners-dominated luminal samples had a corresponding Gardnerella-dominated tissue microbiome. Broadly, the tissue-adherent microbiome was associated with fewer differentially expressed host genes than the luminal microbiome. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that L. crispatus-dominated tissue-adherent communities were associated with protein translation and antimicrobial activity, whereas a highly diverse microbial community was associated with epithelial remodeling and pro-inflammatory pathways. Tissue-adherent communities dominated by L. iners and Gardnerella were associated with lower host transcriptional activity. Tissue-adherent microbiomes dominated by Lactobacillus and Gardnerella correlated with host protein profiles associated with epithelial barrier stability, although with a more pro-inflammatory profile for the Gardnerella-dominated microbiome group. Tissue samples with a highly diverse composition had a protein profile representing cell proliferation and pro-inflammatory activity.CONCLUSION:
We identified ectocervical tissue-adherent bacterial communities in all study participants of a female sex worker cohort. These communities were distinct from cervicovaginal luminal microbiota in a significant proportion of individuals. We further revealed that bacterial communities at both sites correlated with distinct host gene expression and protein levels. The tissue-adherent bacterial community could possibly act as a reservoir that seed the lumen with less optimal, non-Lactobacillus, bacteria. Video Abstract.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Trabajadores Sexuales
/
Microbiota
Límite:
Female
/
Humans
País/Región como asunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Microbiome
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Suecia