1.Relationship between IL-1Ra gene polymorphism and the natural outcome of asymptomatic bacterial vaginosis
Rui ZHANG ; Jiahuizi GAO ; Hanyu DONG ; Chang LI ; Haixu YIN
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2024;59(2):362-365
Objective To investigate the relationship between interleukin 1 receptor a(IL-1Ra)gene polymorphism and different outcomes in asymptomatic bacterial vaginosis(aBV)patients with the aim of grouping and managing aBV patients.Methods In study on the natural attribution of aBV patients,all patients were enrolled and a sam-ple of venous blood and vaginal lavage fluid were separately frozen.After 4 months at the end of the clinical study,patients who completed the study were divided into three groups based on clinical outcomes:self-healing,progres-sive,and unchanged.The IL-1Ra gene polymorphism,the concentration of IL-1 β and IL-1Ra were tested,and the differences in the above indicators among three groups of patients with different outcomes were compared.Results 1 014 Chinese Han female patients were enrolled,and 984 patients completed clinical follow-up and obtained clini-cal outcome data.13 specimens were unusable during testing,with a total of 971 specimens completed the test.IL-1Ra gene was detected in all patients,with three genotypes:A1/A1,A1/A2,and A2/A2.Most population had a genotype of A1/A1,with the rarest genotype being A2/A2.No rare genotype of female was found.The frequency of A2 alleles in the progression group was significantly higher than that in the self-healing group(P<0.05).IL-1 βand IL-1Ra were detected in all vaginal lavage fluid samples.Compared with the progression group,IL-1 β in the self-healing group was significantly lower(P<0.05).When carrying the A2 allele,IL-1 β in progression group was relatively low,while the level of IL-1Ra was relatively high.The values of the unchanged group were middle.Con-clusion The polymorphism characteristics of the IL-1Ra gene in aBV patients are related to the IL-1Ra content in vaginal secretions.Carrying allele A2 is related to the elevation of IL-1Ra,the decrease of IL-1 β in vaginal secre-tions.Carrying allele A2 may affect the clinical outcome of aBV by some potential mechanism.
2.Screening of Lactobacillus that inhibit Gardnerella vaginalis and preliminary study on its bacteriostatic mechanism
Rui Zhang ; Aixin Ma ; Junzhu Wang ; Chang Li ; Haixu Yin ; Huihui Bai ; Zhaohui Liu
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2023;58(11):1962-1965
Objective :
To select and obtain vaginal Lactobacillus strains with inhibitory effect on Gardnerella vagi⁃
nalis , and to explore the possible mechanism of inhibition of Gardnerella vaginalis by Lactobacillus vaginalis strains , so as to provide a prerequisite for the development of dominant strains for human disease treatment.
Methods :
Gardnerella vaginalis and vaginal Lactobacillus strains were isolated from vaginal secretions of patients with bacterial vaginosis (BV) and healthy women , respectively. The Lactobacillus strains with the ability to inhibit the proliferation of Gardnerella vaginalis were screened by spot on lawn. Double agar diffusion method was used to compare the inhibitory effects of Lactobacillus solutions , cell⁃free culture supernatants (CFCs) and bacteria on Gardnerella vaginalis.
Results :
Sixty⁃two strains of vaginal Lactobacillus strains were isolated and purified from vaginal vaginal secretions of 10 patients with bacterial vaginosis. Among the 62 strains of vaginal Lactobacillus , 18 strains could inhibit the proliferation of Gardnerella vaginalis. The vaginal Lactobacillus solutions , the CFCs , and bacteria all had inhibitory effect on Gardnerella vaginalis. The inhibitory effects of vaginal Lactobacillus solutions were higher than those of the CFCs. After the CFCs were treated with proteinase K , the inhibitory effect of eight samples disappeared , and that of 10 samples weakened obviously.
Conclusion
In this paper, 62 vaginal Lactobacillus strains are purified and identified , of which 18 strains can inhibit the proliferation of Gardnerella vaginalis. The production of antimicrobial protein may be involved in the mechanism that vaginal Lactobacillus inhibits the proliferation of Gardnerella vaginalis.
3.Expression of enolase and laminin in the vagina of bacterial vaginosis of mice
Rui Zhang ; Yiqing Wu ; Haixu Yin ; Chang Li ; Aixin Ma ; Junzhu Wang ; Huihui Bai ; Zhaohui Liu ; Qinping Liao
Acta Universitatis Medicinalis Anhui 2024;59(11):1939-1943
Objective:
To investigate the differences in enolase and laminin levels in vaginal epithelial tissues between mice successfully infected withGardnerellaand mice not infected with Gardnerella, providing information for further exploration of the correlation between enolase and laminin levels and the incidence of bacterial vaginosis.
Methods:
Gardnerella strains isolated, purified, and identified from vaginal secretions of patients with bacterial vaginosis were used to infect the vagina of mice and establish a mouse model of bacterial vaginosis. Successful and failed mice was defined as successful and failed groups, respectively. Differential expression of enolase and laminin in the vaginal epithelial tissue of two groups of mice was detected by Western blot. Modeling success rate was statistically analyzed, and the expression differences of enolase and laminin was compared between two groups.
Results:
One strain of Gardnerella vaginalis infected 10 SPF grade KM mice, 7 mice met the diagnostic criteria for bacterial vaginosis, and 3 mice failed to model, with a success rate of 70%. Western blot was used to detect protein expression levels, and the levels of laminin and enolase in the successfully modeled mouse vaginal epithelial tissue were significantly higher than those in the failed modeling group, with statistical differences between the two groups(P<0.05).
Conclusion
Enolase and laminin may be involved in the occurrence of bacterial vaginosis, however, further research is needed to determine the mechanisms through which they trigger the occurrence and development of the disease.