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Del Pinto R, Ferri C, Giannoni M, Cominelli F, Pizarro TT, Pietropaoli D. Meta-analysis of oral microbiome reveals sex-based diversity in biofilms during periodontitis. JCI Insight 2024; 9:e171311. [PMID: 39253976 PMCID: PMC11385077 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.171311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 09/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Sex is an often overlooked, yet compulsory, biological variable when performing biomedical research. Periodontitis is a common yet progressively debilitating chronic inflammatory disorder affecting the tissues supporting teeth that ultimately leads to tooth loss if left untreated. The incidence of periodontitis is sex biased, with increased prevalence in males compared with females but with unknown etiology. We performed a sex-specific meta-analysis using publicly available oral microbiome data from different sampling sites of patients with periodontitis and periodontally healthy controls; sex balance was established for each periodontal health condition. Our results show sex-based diversity in oral biofilms of individuals with periodontitis but not in their saliva, with increased abundance of several periodontal pathogens in subgingival plaques from females compared with males. We devised a quantitative measure, uniquely defined as the Microsexome Index (MSI), which indicates that sexual dimorphism in subgingival bacterial composition is a distinct feature of reduced microbial diversity during periodontitis but not under healthy conditions. In addition, we found that smoking exacerbates microsexome diversity in supragingival biofilms, particularly during periodontitis. Taken together, we provide insights regarding sex-based diversity in periodontitis, a disease with multiorgan associations, and provide the rationale for further mechanistic, diagnostic, and therapeutic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Del Pinto
- San Salvatore Hospital, Department of Clinical Medicine, Public Health, Life and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
- Oral DISeases and SYstemic interactions study group (ODISSY group), L’Aquila, Italy (detailed in Supplemental Acknowledgments)
| | - Claudio Ferri
- San Salvatore Hospital, Department of Clinical Medicine, Public Health, Life and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy
- Oral DISeases and SYstemic interactions study group (ODISSY group), L’Aquila, Italy (detailed in Supplemental Acknowledgments)
| | - Mario Giannoni
- Oral DISeases and SYstemic interactions study group (ODISSY group), L’Aquila, Italy (detailed in Supplemental Acknowledgments)
- Center of Oral Diseases, Prevention and Translational Research, Dental Clinic, Department of Clinical Medicine, Public Health, Life and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy
| | - Fabio Cominelli
- Department of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Theresa T. Pizarro
- Department of Pathology, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
| | - Davide Pietropaoli
- Oral DISeases and SYstemic interactions study group (ODISSY group), L’Aquila, Italy (detailed in Supplemental Acknowledgments)
- Center of Oral Diseases, Prevention and Translational Research, Dental Clinic, Department of Clinical Medicine, Public Health, Life and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila, L’Aquila, Italy
- Department of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
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Brennan C, Chan K, Kumar T, Maissy E, Brubaker L, Dothard MI, Gilbert JA, Gilbert KE, Lewis AL, Thackray VG, Zarrinpar A, Knight R. Harnessing the power within: engineering the microbiome for enhanced gynecologic health. REPRODUCTION AND FERTILITY 2024; 5:e230060. [PMID: 38513356 PMCID: PMC11046331 DOI: 10.1530/raf-23-0060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Abstract Although numerous studies have demonstrated the impact of microbiome manipulation on human health, research on the microbiome's influence on female health remains relatively limited despite substantial disease burden. In light of this, we present a selected review of clinical trials and preclinical studies targeting both the vaginal and gut microbiomes for the prevention or treatment of various gynecologic conditions. Specifically, we explore studies that leverage microbiota transplants, probiotics, prebiotics, diet modifications, and engineered microbial strains. A healthy vaginal microbiome for females of reproductive age consists of lactic acid-producing bacteria predominantly of the Lactobacillus genus, which serves as a protective barrier against pathogens and maintains a balanced ecosystem. The gut microbiota's production of short-chain fatty acids, metabolism of primary bile acids, and modulation of sex steroid levels have significant implications for the interplay between host and microbes throughout the body, ultimately impacting reproductive health. By harnessing interventions that modulate both the vaginal and gut microbiomes, it becomes possible to not only maintain homeostasis but also mitigate pathological conditions. While the field is still working toward making broad clinical recommendations, the current studies demonstrate that manipulating the microbiome holds great potential for addressing diverse gynecologic conditions. Lay summary Manipulating the microbiome has recently entered popular culture, with various diets thought to aid the microbes that live within us. These microbes live in different locations of our body and accordingly help us digest food, modulate our immune system, and influence reproductive health. The role of the microbes living in and influencing the female reproductive tract remains understudied despite known roles in common conditions such as vulvovaginal candidiasis (affecting 75% of females in their lifetime), bacterial vaginosis (25% of females in their lifetime), cervical HPV infection (80% of females in their lifetime), endometriosis (6-10% of females of reproductive age), and polycystic ovary syndrome (10-12% of females of reproductive age). Here, we review four different approaches used to manipulate the female reproductive tract and gastrointestinal system microbiomes: microbiota transplants, probiotics, prebiotics, and dietary interventions, and the use of engineered microbial strains. In doing so, we aim to stimulate discussion on new ways to understand and treat female reproductive health conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitriona Brennan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Kristina Chan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Tanya Kumar
- Medical Scientist Training Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Erica Maissy
- Division of Gastroenterology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Linda Brubaker
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Marisol I Dothard
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Jack A Gilbert
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Center for Microbiome Innovation, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Katharine E Gilbert
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Amanda L Lewis
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Varykina G Thackray
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Center for Microbiome Innovation, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Amir Zarrinpar
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Division of Gastroenterology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Center for Microbiome Innovation, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Jennifer Moreno Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, La Jolla, California, USA
- Institute of Diabetes and Metabolic Health, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Rob Knight
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Center for Microbiome Innovation, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
- Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
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Rodríguez-Barreto D, Sanz-González JC, Martín MV, Arrieta JM, Almansa E. Sex-specific bacterial microbiome variation in octopus vulgaris skin. Front Microbiol 2024; 14:1233661. [PMID: 38318128 PMCID: PMC10842966 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1233661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Growing knowledge of the host-microbiota of vertebrates has shown the prevalence of sex-specific differences in the microbiome. However, there are virtually no studies assessing sex-associated variation in the microbiome of cephalopods. Here we assess sex-specific variation in the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) skin microbiome using amplicon sequencing targeting the V4 hypervariable region of prokaryote 16S rRNA genes. Skin and mantle-associated mucus was collected from wild adult individuals of common Octopus (Octopus vulgaris) (9 males and 7 females of similar size). There were no significant differences in the alpha diversity of microbial communities associated with skin or mantle mucosa between sexes. However, our results clearly indicate that adult octopus males and females have a distinct microbial community composition in both skin and mantle associated mucus communities, with female microbiome being dominated by Firmicutes (48.1%), while that of males contained a majority of Proteobacteria (60.5%), with Firmicutes representing only 3.30%, not finding significant differentiation in the microbial communities between the tissues explored. The dominance of different taxa in the skin of O. vulgaris females and males (e.g., Mycoplasmatales and Lactococcus in females and Rhizobiales and Rhodobacteriales in males) suggests a sex-specific symbiosis in which those microbes benefit from easy access to distinct substrates present in female and male skin, respectively. Given the lack of differences in size between specimens of both sexes in this study, we hypothesize differences in hormone profile, as well as behavioral or ecological differences between sexes in the wild, as the main drivers of microbiome differentiation between sexes. Most knowledge of cephalopod microbiota is limited to the digestive tract and the reproductive system. However, cephalopod skin is an organ with a plethora of functions. This is a first attempt to characterize cephalopod skin microbiota and determine sex influence on it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deiene Rodríguez-Barreto
- Canary Islands Oceanographic Center, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
- University of La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | - Juan Carlos Sanz-González
- Canary Islands Oceanographic Center, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | - M. Virginia Martín
- Canary Islands Oceanographic Center, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | - Jesús M. Arrieta
- Canary Islands Oceanographic Center, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
| | - Eduardo Almansa
- Canary Islands Oceanographic Center, Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
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Gut Microsex/Genderome, Immunity and the Stress Response in the Sexes: An Updated Review. SEXES 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sexes3040039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Sex has been universally acknowledged as a confounding factor in every type of biological study, while there are strong sex differences in morbidity along the lifespan. Humans have almost identical genomes (99.2%), yet minor variance in their DNA produces remarkable phenotypic diversity across the human population. On the other hand, metagenomic analysis of the human microbiome is more variable, depending on the sex, lifestyle, geography, and age of individuals under study. Immune responses in humans also exhibit variations, with an especially striking sexual dimorphism, which is at play in several other physiologic processes. Sex steroids have noticeable effects on the composition of the human microbiome along the lifespan, accompanied by parallel changes in immunity and the stress response. Gut microsex/genderome, a recently coined term, defines the sexually dimorphic gut microbiome. Apart from the sex steroids, the stress hormones are also at play in the proliferation of microbes. This review summarizes the concept of gut microsex/genderome under the prism of recent studies on the interrelations of the sexually dimorphic microbiome with immunity and stress.
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