The microbiome effect on the female reproductive performance

The female reproductive function is coordinated by the endocrine system driven by the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. While not directly part of the female reproductive system, the gut microbiome plays a crucial role in overall health, including reproductive health. The gut microbiome communicates bidirectionally with the brain via the gut-brain axis, influencing stress levels, mood, and hormonal balance, which can impact reproductive health and fertility. In addition to that, the vaginal and uterine microbiome are directly involved with the reproductive success of farm animals, including female fertility and offspring development. In this paper, we summarize some of the effects of bacterial contamination in the female reproductive tract and their association with reproductive performance in farm animals.

Characterization of the primo vascular system in rabbit vagina

The primo vascular system (PVS) is observed in different parts of the body under different physiological and disease conditions. Previously, the PVS was not observed in the vagina. The vaginal samples of this study were collected from the female genitalia of healthy New Zealand white rabbits from the animal house, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University. The vaginal samples were fixed in Bouin's solution. The sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and Crossmon's trichrome. Additionally, the sections were immunohistochemically stained with neuron-specific enolase (NSE) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). A primo node was observed on the lymph vessel of the vagina and has several characteristics that resemble those of the previously discovered primo nodes. The primo node in this study was surrounded by mesothelial cells that provide positive immunoreactivity to NSE and VEGF. Sinuses of different sizes, floating cells, telocyte-like cell, and primo microcells were observed as the main constituents of the primo node. Additionally, migratory cells were detected, which passed from the primo node to the enclosing lymph vessel.

Antimicrobial peptides of the vaginal innate immunity and their role in the fight against sexually transmitted diseases

Some antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are produced in the vaginal innate immune system and play an important role in protecting this organ against pathogenic agents. Moreover, sexually transmitted diseases have become a major problem in human societies and are rapidly spreading. The emergence of antibiotic-resistant microbes (superbugs) can pose a major threat to human societies and cause rapid spread of these diseases. Finding new antimicrobial compounds to fight superbugs is therefore essential. It has been shown that AMPs have good potential to become new antibiotics. The most important AMPs in the vaginal innate immune system are defensins, secretory leucocyte protease inhibitors, calprotectin, lysozyme, lactoferrin and elafin, which play an important role in host defence against sexually transmitted infections, modulation of immune responses and anticancer activities. Some AMPs, such as LL-37, magainin 2 and nisin, show both spermicidal and antimicrobial effects in the vagina. In this summary, we will discuss vaginal AMPs and continue to address some of the challenges of using peptides to control pathogens that are effective in sexually transmitted diseases.

Vaginal and Uterine Bacterial Communities in Postpartum Lactating Cows

Reproductive inefficiency in cattle has major impacts on overall productivity of cattle operations, increasing cost of production, and impacting the sustainability of the cattle enterprise. Decreased reproductive success and associated disease states have been correlated with the presence of specific microbes and microbial community profiles, yet details of the relationship between microbial communities and host physiology are not well known. The present study profiles and compares the microbial communities in the bovine uterus and vagina using 16S rRNA sequencing of the V1-V3 hypervariable region at the time of artificial insemination. Significant differences (p < 0.05) between the vaginal and uterine communities were observed at the level of α-diversity metrics, including Chao1, Shannon's Diversity Index, and observed OTU. Greater clustering of vaginal OTU was apparent in principal coordinate analysis compared to uterine OTU, despite greater diversity in the vaginal community in both weighted and unweighted UniFrac distance matrices (p < 0.05). There was a significantly greater relative abundance of unassigned taxa in the uterus (p = 0.008), otherwise there were few differences between the overall community profiles. Both vaginal and uterine communities were dominated by Firmicutes, although the relative abundance of rRNA sequences corresponding to species in this phylum was significantly (p = 0.007) lower in the uterine community. Additional differences were observed at the genus level, specifically in abundances within Clostridium (p = 0.009), Anaerofustis (p = 0.018), Atopobium (p = 0.035), Oscillospira (p = 0.035), 5-7N15 (p = 0.035), Mycoplasma (p = 0.035), Odoribacter (p = 0.042), and within the families Clostridiaceae (p = 0.006), Alcaligenaceae (p = 0.021), and Ruminococcaceae (p = 0.021). Overall, the comparison revealed differences and commonalities among bovine reproductive organs, which may be influenced by host physiology. The increased abundance of unassigned taxa found in the uterus may play a significant biological role in the reproductive status of the animal. The study represents an initial dataset for comparing bacterial communities prior to establishment of pregnancy.