Sistema FMUSP-HC: Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo (FMUSP) e Hospital das Clínicas da FMUSPMORALES, Julia Andrade PessoaMARCONI, CamilaEL-ZEIN, MariamRAVEL, JacquesPINTO, Gabriel Victor da SilvaSILVEIRA, RosanaLIMA, Moises Diogo deCARVALHO, Newton Sergio deALVES, Rosane Ribeiro FigueiredoPARADA, Cristina Maria Garcia de LimaLEITE, Sandra Helena MoraisVILLA, Luisa L.FRANCO, Eduardo L.SILVA, Marcia Guimaraes da2022-12-212022-12-212022JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, v.226, n.6, p.1084-1097, 20220022-1899https://observatorio.fm.usp.br/handle/OPI/50490Background Interplay between vaginal microbiome and human papillomavirus (HPV) remains unclear, partly due to heterogeneity of microbiota. Methods We used data from 546 women enrolled in a cross-sectional study in 5 Brazil. We genotyped vaginal samples for HPV and sequenced V3-V4 region of 16S rRNA gene for vaginal microbiome analysis. We used stepwise logistic regression to construct 2 linear scores to predict high-risk HPV (hrHPV) positivity: one based exclusively on presence of individual bacterial taxa (microbiome-based [MB] score) and the other exclusively on participants' sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical (SBC) characteristics. MB score combined coefficients of 30 (of 116) species. SBC score retained 6 of 25 candidate variables. We constructed receiver operating characteristic curves for scores as hrHPV correlates and compared areas under the curve (AUC) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results Overall, prevalence of hrHPV was 15.8%, and 26.2% had a Lactobacillus-depleted microbiome. AUCs were 0.8022 (95% CI, .7517-.8527) for MB score and 0.7027 (95% CI, .6419-.7636) for SBC score (P = .0163). Conclusions The proposed MB score is strongly correlated with hrHPV positivity-exceeding the predictive value of behavioral variables-suggesting its potential as an indicator of infection and possible value for clinical risk stratification. This cross-sectional study demonstrated a strong correlation between vaginal microbiome components and cervical high-risk HPV positivity.engrestrictedAccessvaginal microbiomeHPV infectionhigh-risk HPV16S RNA sequencingbacterial vaginosisreproductive-agechlamydial infectionsexual-behaviorhpv infectionrisk-factorswomencancerarticleCopyright OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC10.1093/infdis/jiab547ImmunologyInfectious DiseasesMicrobiology1537-6613