Healthy 'bugs' might alter how the viruses work, researcher says
Healthy 'bugs' might alter how the viruses work, researcher says
By HealthDay News
Vaginal bacteria may affect the sexually
transmitted Zika virus and herpes simplex virus-2, possibly helping to
protect women from these infections, a new study suggests.
"The
human vagina has a wide array of bacterial species living in communities
called the microbiome; these are very important for a woman's health,"
study lead author Megan Amerson said. She's a doctoral student at the
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
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ran a series of laboratory experiments to see how different bacterial
environments affected how well the viruses survived and replicated.
Amerson's team used transplanted vaginal microbiome samples from healthy
donors.
Cultures with more Lactobacillus bacteria were considered the more healthy environment. Lactobacillus is normally found in the mix of bacteria in a healthy vagina, the researchers explained.
They found that the herpes simplex virus-2 replicated more in cultures that contained less Lactobacillus.
The researchers found mixed results with the Zika virus, and they said
this suggests more specific species of bacteria might affect Zika
replication. Further studies are needed to determine what kind of
bacterial species affect Zika, the investigators said.
"When
confronted with viruses, such as those responsible for sexually
transmitted diseases, these vaginal bacteria can limit or possibly
prevent infection by changing the expression of genes within the vaginal
cells," Amerson said in a news release from the American Society for
Microbiology.
The findings were presented last week at the
American Society for Microbiology's annual meeting, in New Orleans.
Studies presented at meetings are typically viewed as preliminary until
they've been published in a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on sexually transmitted diseases.
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