Vaginal microbiota and human papillomavirus: a systematic review

Abstract

Accumulating evidence indicates the potential correlation between the vaginal microbioma and the acquisition and persistence of humanpapillomavirus (HPV) infection. This study aims to demonstrate the potential relationship through a systematic review of the current literature.A search was conducted on the following medical databases: PubMed and Scopus. Nineteen studies met the inclusion criteria and wereincorporated in the present review. A total of 12.204 patients and their demographic characteristics were studied. Commercially available DNAtests and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were used for the detection of different HPV subtypes, while the identification of the microbiomeswas performed through specific diagnostic methods and PCR assay. The most frequently encountered species were classified based on theirprotective or detrimental impact on the progression of HPV infection. The beneficial role of some types of Lactobacillus (Lactobacillus gasseri,Lactobacillus jensenii, Lactobacillus crispatus) is generally supported. On the other hand, high microbial diversity and specific microorganismssuch as Sneathia, Anaerococcus tetradius, Peptostreptococcus, Fusobacterium and Gardnerella vaginalis were found to be implicated with higherfrequency and severity of disease, potentially resulting in pre-cancerous and cancerous cervical lesions.The role of vaginal microbiota appears toplay an as yet not fully understood role in the susceptibility to HPV infection and its natural history. (J Turk Ger Gynecol Assoc 2020; 21: 193-200)