NYMC Faculty Publications

Genetic Predictors for Bacterial Vaginosis in Women Living With and at Risk for HIV Infection

Kerry Murphy, Departments of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.
Quihu Shi, School of Health Sciences and Practice, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York, USA.
Donald R. Hoover, Department of Statistics and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research Rutgers the State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA.
Adaora A. Adimora, Department of Medicine, UNC School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
Maria L. Alcaide, Department of Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynecology and Public Health, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, USA.
Susan Brockmann, Health Sciences Center, State University of New York, Brooklyn, New York, USA.
Elizabeth Daubert, Cook County Health/Hektoen Institute of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Priya Duggal, Department of Epidemiology and International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Daniel Merenstein, Dept of Family Medicine, Georgetown University, Washington, USA.
Jodie A. Dionne, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
Anandi N. Sheth, Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Marla J. Keller, Departments of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.
Betsy C. Herold, Microbiology and Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.
Kathryn Anastos, Departments of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA.
Bradley Aouizerat, NYU College of Dentistry, New York, New York, USA.

Author Type(s)

Faculty

Journal Title

American Journal of Reproductive Immunology

First Page

e13845

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-1-2024

Department

Public Health

Abstract

PROBLEM: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) disproportionally impacts Black and Hispanic women, placing them at risk for HIV, sexually transmitted infections and preterm birth. It is unknown whether there are differences by genetic ancestry in BV risk or whether polymorphisms associated with BV risk differ by ancestry. METHODS: Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) participants with longitudinal Nugent scores were dichotomized as having (n = 319, Nugent 7-10) or not having BV (n = 367, Nugent 0-3). Genetic ancestry was defined by clustering of principal components from ancestry informative markers and further stratified by BV status. 627 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across 41 genes important in mucosal defense were identified in the WIHS GWAS. A logistic regression analysis was adjusted for nongenetic predictors of BV and self-reported race/ethnicity to assess associations between genetic ancestry and genotype. RESULTS: Self-reported race and genetic ancestry were associated with BV risk after adjustment for behavioral factors. Polymorphisms in mucosal defense genes including syndecans, cytokines and toll-like receptors (TLRs) were associated with BV in all ancestral groups. CONCLUSIONS: The common association of syndecan, cytokine and TLR genes and the importance of immune function and inflammatory pathways in BV, suggests these should be targeted for further research on BV pathogenesis and therapeutics.

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