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Updated: Jul 17, 2026

Modeling Healthy and Dysbiotic Vaginal Microenvironments in a Human Vagina-on-a-Chip
Published on: February 16, 2024
Host immune consequences of asymptomatic Trichomonas vaginalis infection in pregnancy
Hyagriv N Simhan1, Brenna L Anderson, Marijane A Krohn
1Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Magee-Womens Research Institute, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to define the impact of asymptomatic trichomoniasis on lower genital tract neutrophil activation in pregnancy.
Study Design:
In this nested cohort study, pelvic examination was performed on 65 asymptomatic pregnant women between 7 and 22 weeks' with vaginal pH > 4.4. Concentrations of cervical interleukin-8 and alpha-defensin were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Trichomonas vaginalis was detected by culture.
Results:
Median concentrations of vaginal fluid neutrophil defensins and cervical interleukin-8 were significantly greater among women with asymptomatic trichomoniasis (median defensins 18,622 ng/mL, median IL-8 9244 pg/mL) than their uninfected counterparts (median defensins 5144 ng/mL, median IL-8 2044 pg/mL) (P < .001). All women with asymptomatic trichomoniasis had detectable defensin and interleukin-8 concentrations.
Conclusion:
Asymptomatic trichomoniasis in pregnancy is accompanied by a state of neutrophil activation.
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The initial cells that migrate from the fetal thymus settle within the skin and epithelial tissues lining the mouth, digestive tract, and in females, the uterus and vagina. These cells, including skin-based dendritic cells, serve as antigen-presenting cells, playing a key role in T cell activation.
Subsequent T...

