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Amaral WZ, Lubach GR, Rendina DN, Phillips GJ, Lyte M, Coe CL. 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. Microorganisms 2023; 11:1481. [PMID: 37374982 PMCID: PMC10304935 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11061481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Revised: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
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.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gabriele R. Lubach
- Harlow Center for Biological Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53715, USA; (G.R.L.); (D.N.R.)
| | - Danielle N. Rendina
- Harlow Center for Biological Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53715, USA; (G.R.L.); (D.N.R.)
- Health and Biosciences, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), Wilmington, DE 19803, USA
| | - Gregory J. Phillips
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA; (G.J.P.); (M.L.)
| | - Mark Lyte
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA; (G.J.P.); (M.L.)
| | - Christopher L. Coe
- Harlow Center for Biological Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53715, USA; (G.R.L.); (D.N.R.)
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Zhang QQ, Liu ZH, Liu LL, Hu G, Lei GL, Wang Y, Cao Y, Wu W, Zhang L, Liao QP. Prebiotic Maltose Gel Can Promote the Vaginal Microbiota From BV-Related Bacteria Dominant to Lactobacillus in Rhesus Macaque. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:594065. [PMID: 33240248 PMCID: PMC7677408 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.594065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The high incidence of bacterial vaginosis recurrence is common after treatment with an antibiotic agent and suggests the need for new treatments to prevent this. We conducted a randomized trial to evaluate the ability of maltose gel to treat bacterial vaginosis. Eighteen female rhesus macaques were randomly assigned, in a 2:1 ratio, to receive maltose gel or placebo gel by syringe to the fornix of the vagina for five consecutive days. We used 16S rRNA sequencing data from 70 swab samples of vaginal secretions in two groups in total on days 0, 3, and 5 after medication initiation and days 3 and 5 after medication withdrawal for the study of microbiome composition. We found that, in the placebo control group, there was no significant change in the composition and abundance of vaginal microbiota during the follow-up period. In the maltose gel test group, the abundance of Lactobacillus in the vagina microbiota increased gradually with the prolongation of the treatment time on Days 3 and 5 (ANOVA p = 6.99e−5 < 0.01) but began to decrease after the withdrawal of maltose gel, which was different from that of the control group. Correspondingly, the diversity and abundance of BV-related bacteria, Fusobacterium, Parvimonas, Mobiluncus, Campylobacter, Prevotella, and Sneathia, decreased on Day 0 to Day 5 of medication and increased after drug withdrawal in the maltose gel test group. The study confirms that maltose gel can facilitate the proliferation of Lactobacillus and promote the transition of the vaginal microbiota from BV-related bacteria dominant to Lactobacillus dominant in the rhesus macaque.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiong-Qiong Zhang
- School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Zhi-Heng Liu
- School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Li-Ling Liu
- Shenzhen Eulikan Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Shenzhen, China
| | - Gang Hu
- Sichuan Green-house Biotech Co., Ltd, Sichuan, China
| | - Guang-Lun Lei
- Sichuan Green-house Biotech Co., Ltd, Sichuan, China
| | - Ying Wang
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Yang Cao
- Suzhou Turing Microbial Technologies Co., Ltd, Suzhou, China
| | - Wei Wu
- Suzhou Turing Microbial Technologies Co., Ltd, Suzhou, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Qin-Ping Liao
- School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, School of Clinical Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
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