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Synchronous genitourinary lichen sclerosus signals a distinct urinary microbiome profile in men with urethral stricture disease

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Abstract

Purpose

Alterations in the urinary microbiome have been associated with urological diseases. The microbiome of patients with urethral stricture disease (USD) remains unknown. Our objective is to examine the microbiome of USD with a focus on inflammatory USD caused by lichen sclerosus (LS).

Methods

We collected mid-stream urine samples from men with LS-USD (cases; n = 22) and non-LS USD (controls; n = 76). DNA extraction, PCR amplification of the V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene, and sequencing was done on the samples. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were defined using a > 97% sequence similarity threshold. Alpha diversity measurements of diversity, including microbiome richness (number of different OTUs) and evenness (distribution of OTUs) were calculated and compared. Microbiome beta diversity (difference between microbial communities) relationships with cases and controls were also assessed.

Results

Fifty specimens (13 cases and 37 controls) produced a 16S rRNA amplicon. Mean sample richness was 25.9 vs. 16.8 (p = 0.076) for LS-USD vs. non-LS USD, respectively. LS-USD had a unique profile of bacteria by taxonomic order including Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine. The beta variation of observed bacterial communities was best explained by the richness.

Conclusions

Men with LS-USD may have a unique microbiologic richness, specifically inclusive of Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine compared to those with non-LS USD. Further work will be required to elucidate the clinical relevance of these variations in the urinary microbiome.

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Funding

This work was made possible by generous gifts from Jonathan Kaplan, the Alafi fund, and Anita and Kevan Del Grande Funding was provided by Alafi Foundation (Grant no. 10001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. James Buchanan Brady Urological Institute, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Andrew J. Cohen

  2. Department of Urology, University of California, Los Angeles UCLA, Los Angeles, USA

    Thomas W. Gaither

  3. Department of Urology, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, University of California-San Francisco, 1001 Potrero Suite 3A, San Francisco, CA, 94110, USA

    Sudarshan Srirangapatanam, Erick R. Castellanos, Anthony Enriquez, Kirkpatrick B. Fergus, Nnenaya A. Mmonu & Benjamin N. Breyer

  4. Department of Medicine-Gastroenterology, Microbiome Research Core, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Douglas Fadrosh & Susan Lynch

  5. Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Benjamin N. Breyer

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  1. Andrew J. Cohen
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Correspondence to Benjamin N. Breyer.

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Cohen, A.J., Gaither, T.W., Srirangapatanam, S. et al. Synchronous genitourinary lichen sclerosus signals a distinct urinary microbiome profile in men with urethral stricture disease. World J Urol 39, 605–611 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345-020-03198-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345-020-03198-9

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