Saccharomyces cerevisiae-Based Probiotics as Novel Antimicrobial Agents to Prevent and Treat Vaginal Infections

Roberta Gaziano; Samuele Sabbatini; Elena Roselletti; Stefano Perito; Claudia Monari

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.00718

Saccharomyces cerevisiae-Based Probiotics as Novel Antimicrobial Agents to Prevent and Treat Vaginal Infections

Front Microbiol. 2020 Apr 21:11:718. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00718. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Roberta Gaziano¹, Samuele Sabbatini², Elena Roselletti², Stefano Perito², Claudia Monari²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
² Department of Medicine, Medical Microbiology Section, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.

Abstract

Vaginal infections affect 70% of women during their lifetimes and account for millions of annual doctors' visits. These infections are predominantly represented by vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) and bacterial vaginosis (BV). Although standard antimicrobial agents remain the major strategy for the prevention and treatment of vaginal infections, both VVC and BV are difficult to treat due to high rates of resistance and recurrence, high probability of complications, and negative effects on the vaginal microbiota. This review focuses on a new approach of yeast-based probiotics for the prevention and/or treatment of these common vaginal infections.

Keywords: Saccharomyces cerevisiae; bacterial vaginosis; probiotics; vaginal microbiota; vulvovaginal candidiasis.

Publication types

Review