Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study
Background and aims: Vaginal microbiomes have been classified into five different general categories, termed Community State Type (CSTs), with CST-III and CST-IV often associated with vaginal dysbiosis which makes women more prone to recurrent infections and assisted reproductive technology (ART) fa...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-02-01
|
| Series: | Microorganisms |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/3/547 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850091553506197504 |
|---|---|
| author | Giovanna Cocomazzi Viviana Contu Silvia De Stefani Lino Del Pup Matteo Buccheri Monica Antinori Lodovico Parmegiani Daniele De Ruvo Francesco Marino Edy Virgili Christine Allen Simone Palini Walter Ciampaglia Matteo Cerboneschi Domenico Baldini Giorgio Maria Baldini Valerio Pazienza |
| author_facet | Giovanna Cocomazzi Viviana Contu Silvia De Stefani Lino Del Pup Matteo Buccheri Monica Antinori Lodovico Parmegiani Daniele De Ruvo Francesco Marino Edy Virgili Christine Allen Simone Palini Walter Ciampaglia Matteo Cerboneschi Domenico Baldini Giorgio Maria Baldini Valerio Pazienza |
| author_sort | Giovanna Cocomazzi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background and aims: Vaginal microbiomes have been classified into five different general categories, termed Community State Type (CSTs), with CST-III and CST-IV often associated with vaginal dysbiosis which makes women more prone to recurrent infections and assisted reproductive technology (ART) failure. Since a healthy microbiome is one of the key steps for successful reproduction, we investigated the impact of modulating the vaginal microbiota through the oral administration of probiotic formula consisting of a consortium of vaginal-specific lactobacilli and prebiotics (Personal Flora 2<sup>®</sup>). Methods: We recruited 32 women who had previous failed IVF cycles and were scheduled to undergo ART. We examined the composition of the vaginal microbiota before and after oral probiotic supplementation using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing technology. Results: Our data show a noticeable modulation of the vaginal microbiome upon probiotic supplementation. In particular, precision probiotic intervention lowers the species diversity, favoring the dominance of <i>Lactobacillus</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.015) and <i>Bifidobacterium</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.000) whilst decreasing the percentage of <i>Atopobium</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.003), <i>Gardnerella</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.022), and <i>Prevotella</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.000). Conclusions: Although CST-III and CST-IV are generally considered detrimental, gynecologists should not refrain from performing IVF in these women if they have been previously subjected to a consortium of precision probiotics treatments, as the administration of specific probiotics reduces the presence of pathogenic bacteria promoting the increase in lactobacilli associated with a healthy vaginal ecosystem, which could impact pregnancy success. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3c7ec2ca885f4b0d8048c1f04baf5e54 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj-art-3c7ec2ca885f4b0d8048c1f04baf5e542025-08-20T02:42:22ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072025-02-0113354710.3390/microorganisms13030547Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional StudyGiovanna Cocomazzi0Viviana Contu1Silvia De Stefani2Lino Del Pup3Matteo Buccheri4Monica Antinori5Lodovico Parmegiani6Daniele De Ruvo7Francesco Marino8Edy Virgili9Christine Allen10Simone Palini11Walter Ciampaglia12Matteo Cerboneschi13Domenico Baldini14Giorgio Maria Baldini15Valerio Pazienza16Division of Gastroenterology, Fondazione IRCCS-Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, 71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, FG, ItalyIntegrative Medicine Unit, Humanitas Gradenigo, Corso Regina Margherita 8/10, 10153 Torino, TO, ItalyClinica Nuova Ricerca, Via Settembrini 17/h, 47923 Rimini, RN, ItalyGynecological Endocrinology and Fertility, University Sanitary Agency Friuli Central (ASUFC), Via San Valentino 18, 33100 Udine, UD, ItalyNew Fertility Group, Via Portuense ROMA, 00149 Rome, RM, ItalyRaprui Clinic, Via Timavo, 2, 00195 Roma, RM, ItalyNext Fertility GynePro, NextClinics International, Via T. Cremona 8, 40137 Bologna, BO, ItalyGynaecology, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine Affidea Promea, Via Menabrea 14, 10126 Torino, TO, ItalyAssociation for Research on Integrative Oncological Therapies (ARTOI), Via Ludovico Micara 73, 00165 Roma, RM, ItalySchool of Biosciences and Veterinary Medicine, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, MC, ItalyReproductive Laboratory Services, LLC, 3500 S. Dupont Highway, Dover, DE 19901, USAOspedale “Cervesi” di Cattolica-AUSL Romagna, Via Ludwig Van Beethoven, 1, 47841 Cattolica, RN, ItalyNext Fertility GynePro, NextClinics International, Via T. Cremona 8, 40137 Bologna, BO, ItalyNEXT Genomics S.r.l, Via Madonna del Piano 6, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, FI, ItalyIVF Center, Momò Fertilife, Via Cala dell’Arciprete, 76011 Bisceglie, BT, ItalyIVF Center, Momò Fertilife, Via Cala dell’Arciprete, 76011 Bisceglie, BT, ItalyDivision of Gastroenterology, Fondazione IRCCS-Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, 71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, FG, ItalyBackground and aims: Vaginal microbiomes have been classified into five different general categories, termed Community State Type (CSTs), with CST-III and CST-IV often associated with vaginal dysbiosis which makes women more prone to recurrent infections and assisted reproductive technology (ART) failure. Since a healthy microbiome is one of the key steps for successful reproduction, we investigated the impact of modulating the vaginal microbiota through the oral administration of probiotic formula consisting of a consortium of vaginal-specific lactobacilli and prebiotics (Personal Flora 2<sup>®</sup>). Methods: We recruited 32 women who had previous failed IVF cycles and were scheduled to undergo ART. We examined the composition of the vaginal microbiota before and after oral probiotic supplementation using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequencing technology. Results: Our data show a noticeable modulation of the vaginal microbiome upon probiotic supplementation. In particular, precision probiotic intervention lowers the species diversity, favoring the dominance of <i>Lactobacillus</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.015) and <i>Bifidobacterium</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.000) whilst decreasing the percentage of <i>Atopobium</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.003), <i>Gardnerella</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.022), and <i>Prevotella</i> (<i>p</i> = 0.000). Conclusions: Although CST-III and CST-IV are generally considered detrimental, gynecologists should not refrain from performing IVF in these women if they have been previously subjected to a consortium of precision probiotics treatments, as the administration of specific probiotics reduces the presence of pathogenic bacteria promoting the increase in lactobacilli associated with a healthy vaginal ecosystem, which could impact pregnancy success.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/3/547vaginal microbiomeprobioticsinfertility |
| spellingShingle | Giovanna Cocomazzi Viviana Contu Silvia De Stefani Lino Del Pup Matteo Buccheri Monica Antinori Lodovico Parmegiani Daniele De Ruvo Francesco Marino Edy Virgili Christine Allen Simone Palini Walter Ciampaglia Matteo Cerboneschi Domenico Baldini Giorgio Maria Baldini Valerio Pazienza Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study Microorganisms vaginal microbiome probiotics infertility |
| title | Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study |
| title_full | Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study |
| title_fullStr | Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study |
| title_short | Refining Unfavorable Vaginal Microbial Community in Infertile Women Subjected to Precision Probiotic Intervention: An Exploratory Single-Arm, Prospective, Open-Label, Interventional Study |
| title_sort | refining unfavorable vaginal microbial community in infertile women subjected to precision probiotic intervention an exploratory single arm prospective open label interventional study |
| topic | vaginal microbiome probiotics infertility |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/13/3/547 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT giovannacocomazzi refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT vivianacontu refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT silviadestefani refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT linodelpup refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT matteobuccheri refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT monicaantinori refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT lodovicoparmegiani refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT danielederuvo refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT francescomarino refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT edyvirgili refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT christineallen refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT simonepalini refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT walterciampaglia refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT matteocerboneschi refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT domenicobaldini refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT giorgiomariabaldini refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy AT valeriopazienza refiningunfavorablevaginalmicrobialcommunityininfertilewomensubjectedtoprecisionprobioticinterventionanexploratorysinglearmprospectiveopenlabelinterventionalstudy |