ORIGINAL ARTICLE   Free access

Minerva Obstetrics and Gynecology 2021 October;73(5):621-31

DOI: 10.23736/S2724-606X.21.04752-7

Copyright © 2021 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Oral administration of Lactobacillus crispatus M247 to papillomavirus-infected women: results of a preliminary, uncontrolled, open trial

Francesco DI PIERRO ^{1, 2} ✉, Anna A. CRISCUOLO ³, Anna DEI GIUDICI ³, Roberto SENATORI ⁴, Francesco SESTI ³, Marco CIOTTI ³, Emilio PICCIONE ³

¹ Scientific Department, Velleja Research, Milan, Italy; ² Digestive Endoscopy Unit and Gastroenterology, Fondazione Poliambulanza, Brescia, Italy; ³ Section of Gynecology, Academic Department of Biomedicine and Prevention and Clinical Department of Surgery, Tor Vergata University Hospital, Rome, Italy; ⁴ SICPCV (Italian Society of Colposcopy and Cervico-Vaginal Pathology) board, Rome, Italy

BACKGROUND: Vaginal microbiotas can be clustered into five different possible categories (CST I to V), according to their bacterial dominance. In CST I, the dominance of Lactobacillus crispatus seems to correlate with better vaginal health and with a lower incidence of sine causa infertility, preterm delivery, bacterial vaginosis, and viral (including human papillomavirus; HPV) infection. According to the same method of classifying the vaginal microbiome, CST IV (non-Lactobacillus-dominated) demonstrates a higher incidence of disorders.
METHODS: In an open, non-controlled study, we enrolled 35 HPV-positive women who mostly (N.=24) demonstrated CST IV status, with the other individuals categorized as having either CST III (N.=10) or CST II (N.=1) microbiotas.
RESULTS: After 90 days of oral treatment with a probiotic (L. crispatus M247) we observed a reduction of approximately 70% in HPV positivity and a significant change in CST status with 94% of women now classified as CST I.
CONCLUSIONS: Despite the limitations of our study, it is the first demonstration that it is possible to intervene orally with an L. crispatus probiotic to bring about a change in CST status and, in parallel, increased HPV clearance.

KEY WORDS: Papillomaviridae; Microbiota; Uterine cervical neoplasms