Doctors in the US are screening potential donors of vaginal fluid as they work towards transplants to help women who suffer from bacterial vaginosis (BV). The transplant would mean an option besides antibiotics for women who repeatedly suffer with the infection.
The research is being conducted after the successful testing of 20 women, which allowed doctors to gain insight into the ideal vaginal fluid donor. Now, after approval from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), they hope to find more volunteers to screen and to start offering women with BV the transplants.
With their findings reported in the Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, it is one of very few studies into the microbiology of the vagina. According to the BBC, doctors at the Johns Hopkins University team were inspired by the success of faecal transplants, which are used to help restore the balance of bacteria in a person’s gut – a much more thoroughly researched are of microbiology.
Similarly to those transplants, a vaginal fluid transplant would involve putting another person’s vaginal fluid inside a patient's vagina with the hope it would restore the natural PH of the vagina.
Bacterial vaginosis occurs when there is a change in the natural balance of bacteria in the vagina, and can occur from having sex, douching, using vaginal wash or hormonal changes as part of the menstrual cycle. One in three women will experience it in their life, but many are unlikely to know what it is as the symptoms can be confused with thrush or a sexually transmitted infection (which it is not classed as).
According to doctors, vaginal fluid with more of a bacterium called lactobacillus crispatus tend to have a lower PH and higher protective lactic acid, both of which can be beneficial to women. Should this be transplanted into women who suffer with BV, it could help treat reoccurrence of the infection.
The donations are collected via a flexible plastic disc that is self-inserted into the vagina and has been compared to a menstrual cup, then transferred into the recipient with a tampon-like applicator.
‘If we can get funding, we could start right away. Some of the donors that we studied said they would want to take part,’ said Dr. Laura Ensign, one of the researchers on the team. ‘We'd plan to give transplants to 40 recipients to begin with. Some would receive the real thing and others a placebo. All of them would get antibiotics for their BV too though.’
Should the screenings prove successful and women were able to receive vaginal fluid transplants, there would likely be more interest by UK doctors. So if you’re a frequent BV sufferer, help might be on the way...
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Anisah Osman Britton is one young entrepreneur on a mission to address the tech industry's issue with gender diversity. She's founded 23 Code Street - a coding school specifically for women - where every paying UK student funds a coding lesson for a disadvantaged student in India.The school's mission is to 'get as many women as possible excited about code, minimise the gender gap and, in turn, diversify the scene.' To achieve this, Anisah runs a number of part-time courses, many lasting 12 weeks, which promise to give students the skills that they need to become developers. So definitely check out her website if you're keen to learn some new tech skills.
2 of 8Florence Adepoju: Founder of MDMflow
Florence Adepoju drew on her science background (she studied cosmetic science at London College of Fashion), to build a beauty empire. Her makeup line, MDMflow, initially started out as a kind of science experiment in her back garden, and now, it's stocked in Boots and Harvey Nichols.From whipping up handmade lipsticks using the latest colour technology, to creating what beauty expert's have described as the greatest mascara of the decade, Florence has achieved a lot in her short time in the science and beauty industries.
3 of 8Kathryn Parsons: Co-founder of Decoded
If you're looking for someone in the tech industry to look up to, Kathryn Parsons is your woman. She co-founded Decoded, a tech startup which aims to increase digital literacy, especially amongst women. Decoded run a range of classes, covering everything from artificial intelligence to blockchain, and over time, Kathryn has become a poster woman for the technology industry.
4 of 8Dr Ozak Esu: Electrical Engineer
An Electrical Engineer and this year's winner of the Institution of Engineering and Technology's Young Woman Engineer of the Year award, Dr Ozak Esu is an expert in the field. She told *The Debrief *'that STEM is a broad industry with rewarding career opportunities for every young woman interested in solving real world problems nationally and internationally.' Noted!
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6 of 8Roma Agrawal: The Woman Behind The Shard
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As the Head of Development for WSP - one of the world's leading engineering professional services firms - Rachel Skinner heads up a team of 950 people. And that's no small feat. She's a trail-blazer in the engineering field, and is currently Vice President at the Institution of Civil Engineers. Talk about career goals.
8 of 8Ellie Wilson: Instrumentation and Control Technician
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