Characterization of the Female Urinary Microbiota and Their Association with the Female Bladder Uroepithelium

The current clinical dogma assumes that urine is sterile in the absence of clinically relevant infection. However, recent evidence has demonstrated the existence of a female urinary microbiota in women with and without lower urinary tract symptoms. With the knowledge that the lower urinary tract possesses its own unique microbiota, I hypothesize that certain bacterial species of the female microbiota may be the cause or play a role in lower urinary tract syndromes such as overactive bladder syndrome (OAB). About 40-50% of OAB patients do not respond to conventional anti-muscarinic and beta-3 adrenergic agonist drug treatment. One possible explanation for this lack of treatment response is a dysbiotic urinary microbiota. In order to determine if women with OAB have a dysbiotic urinary microbiota, an expanded quantitative urine culture (EQUC) protocol was used to culture transurethral catheter urine specimens obtained from women with and without OAB. There are differences in the female urinary microbiota in women with and without OAB. Given evidence of planktonic bacteria in the urine, I hypothesize that bacteria also may be associated with the urothelium. To examine this population, shed urothelial cells from urine were examined for the presence of adherent and/or intracellular bacteria using a new protocol. This new protocol is able to determine which bacteria associate with shed urothelial cells but cannot distinguish between adherent or intracellular bacteria. By determining the differences in urinary microbiota as well as the populations that associate with the urothelium, one can start to get a sense of how the female urinary microbiota could contribute to lower urinary tract disorders

Draft Genome Sequence for a Urinary Isolate of Nosocomiicoccus Ampullae

A draft genome sequence for a urinary isolate of Nosocomiicoccus ampullae (UMB0853) was investigated. The size of the genome was 1,578,043 bp, with an observed G+C content of 36.1%. Annotation revealed 10 rRNA sequences, 40 tRNA genes, and 1,532 protein-coding sequences. Genome coverage was 727× and consisted of 32 contigs, with an N50 of 109,831 bp

Draft Genome for a Urinary Isolate of Lactobacillus crispatus

While Lactobacillus crispatus contributes to the stability of normal vaginal microbiota, its role in urinary health remains unclear. As part of an on-going attempt to characterize the female urinary microbiota, we report the genome sequence of an L. crispatus strain isolated from a woman displaying no lower urinary tract symptoms

Genome Sequences and Annotation of Two Urinary Isolates of E. Coli

The genus Escherichia includes pathogens and commensals. Bladder infections (cystitis) result most often from colonization of the bladder by uropathogenic E. coli strains. In contrast, a poorly defined condition called asymptomatic bacteriuria results from colonization of the bladder with E. coli strains without symptoms. As part of an on-going attempt to identify and characterize the newly discovered female urinary microbiota, we report the genome sequences and annotation of two urinary isolates of E. coli: one (E78) was isolated from a female patient who self-reported cystitis; the other (E75) was isolated from a female patient who reported that she did not have symptoms of cystitis. Whereas strain E75 is most closely related to an avian extraintestinal pathogen, strain E78 is a member of a clade that includes extraintestinal strains often found in the human bladder. Both genomes are uncommonly rich in prophages