No comparisons in counts between HP and CP species were performed due to the differences in nucleic acid extraction Selleckchem Lenvatinib techniques. Using the presence or absence of each of the microbiome species, we divided the study population (CP and HP combined) in groups with Latent Class Analysis, a statistical technique related to cluster analysis, and assessed the distribution of the different groups in the women by BV status and ethnic origin [22]. We assessed the relationship between Nugent scores and the presence of each of

the microbiome species in the CP population using scatter plots, and we added a trend-line and a Spearman correlation coefficient R. Ethical approval IRB approval was obtained from the Institute of Tropical Medicine and from the Ethics Committee at the University Hospital of Antwerp. All study participants gave their written informed consent. Results Study populations Baseline characteristics of the two study populations are presented in Table 2. All women recruited into the HP group were Caucasian. check details They were all asymptomatic at baseline and no diagnosis of BV was made in this group, neither at baseline nor during any of the follow up visits. Five of the 30 HP women (12.5%) had a sexual preference for the same gender and

four of them were currently sexually active. Of the remaining 25 heterosexual women, 17 (68%) were currently sexually active. Follow up of the HP women was high, with 28 out of 30 women completing all visits. Prostate specific antigen (PSA) was detected on 12 occasions in 7 women. Of the women recruited at the clinic (CP), 49% were Caucasian, 32% were of black African origin and living in Belgium, 12% of Asian origin, and for 7%, ethnicity was not recorded. 50% percent of the women at the clinic presented with a complaint of vaginal discharge at baseline and 29% had BV as assessed by Nugent score. The presence of self-reported smelly discharge was significantly G protein-coupled receptor kinase associated with BV (p = 0.001) but no association was seen between BV and ethnicity. Table 2

Baseline Characteristics of Study Populations     Healthy Population (N = 30) Clinic Populationa(N = 41)       ¹ Age (years) Mean (range) 27 (19–38) 27 (15–47)       ² Ethnicity N (%) Black 0 (0) 13 (32)   Caucasian 30 (100) 20 (49)   Asian 0 (0) 5 (12)       ³ Contraception N (%) None 12 (40) 18 (46)   Combined pill 0 (0) 9 (23)   Intrauterine device 1 (3) 8 (21)   Implant 0 (0) 2 (5)   Condoms 17 (57) 2 (5) Nugent score 0–3   30 (100%) 29 (71%) 4–6   0 (0%) 0 (0%) 7–10   0 (0%) 12 (29%) ¹ 5 missing values ² 3 missing values ³ 2 missing values. a STI clinic and HIV testing and counseling centre. Changes over time in species presence and species counts in the healthy women In general, the presence or absence of a particular Lactobacillus species in the HP remained constant throughout the study visits (Figure 1). L. crispatus, L. iners, L. jensenii, and L.