Abstract
Human microbiota refers to living microorganisms which colonize our body and crucially contribute to the metabolism of nutrients and various physiologic functions. According to recently accumulated evidence, human microbiota dysbiosis in the genital tract or pelvic cavity could be involved in the pathogenesis and/or pathophysiology of endometriosis. We aimed to investigate whether the composition of microbiome is altered in the peritoneal fluid in women with endometriosis. We recruited 45 women with histological evidence of ovarian endometrioma and 45 surgical controls without endometriosis. Following the isolation of extracellular vesicles from peritoneal fluid samples from women with and without endometriosis, bacterial genomic DNA was sequenced using next-generation sequencing of the 16S rDNA V3–V4 regions. Diversity analysis showed significant differences in the microbial community at phylum, class, order, family, and genus levels between the two groups. The abundance of Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, and Enhydrobacter significantly increased while the abundance of Propionibacterium, Actinomyces, and Rothia significantly decreased in the endometriosis group compared with those in the control group (p < 0.05). These findings strongly suggest that microbiome composition is altered in the peritoneal environment in women with endometriosis. Further studies are necessary to verify whether dysbiosis itself can cause establishment and/or progression of endometriosis.
Highlights
Endometriosis is the growth of the endometrial tissue at extra-uterine sites
Because endometriosis develops in the pelvic cavity in most cases, we focused on the peritoneal fluid (PF) to investigate the possible role of microbiota in endometriosis
Significant differences in the microbial community were observed in the phylum, class, order, family, and genus levels between the two groups, showing that the microbiome composition is altered in the peritoneal environment in women with advanced stage endometriosis
Summary
Endometriosis is the growth of the endometrial tissue at extra-uterine sites. The tissue is most commonly implanted over and under visceral and peritoneal surfaces within the female pelvis but it can be found in the connective tissue of the extrapelvic region [1,2,3].Endometriosis may cause severe dysmenorrhea, pelvic pain, and infertility, and can seriously deteriorate fertility and quality of life in women. Endometriosis is the growth of the endometrial tissue at extra-uterine sites. The tissue is most commonly implanted over and under visceral and peritoneal surfaces within the female pelvis but it can be found in the connective tissue of the extrapelvic region [1,2,3]. Endometriosis may cause severe dysmenorrhea, pelvic pain, and infertility, and can seriously deteriorate fertility and quality of life in women. The prevalence of endometriosis has been reported to be as high as 10%–15% in women of reproductive age, and its incidence rate is increasing each year [4,5,6]. Despite a long history of basic and clinical research into endometriosis, the mechanism underlying this pathology remains unclear [7,8,9].
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