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Combined hormonal contraceptives are associated with minor changes in composition and diversity in gut microbiota of healthy women |
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| Authors: | Jovana Mihajlovic Michael Leutner Bela Hausmann Gudrun Kohl Jasmin Schwarz Hannah Röver Nina Stimakovits Peter Wolf Katharina Maruszczak Magdalena Bastian Alexandra Kautzky-Willer David Berry |
| Affiliation: | 1. Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science, Division of Microbial Ecology, Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria;2. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria These authors contributed equally to the study.;3. Joint Microbiome Facility of the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria;4. Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science, Division of Microbial Ecology, Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria Joint Microbiome Facility of the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria;5. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria;6. Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria Gender Institute, Gars am Kamp, A-3571 Austria These authors contributed equally to the study. |
| Abstract: | Recent human and animal studies have found associations between gut microbiota composition and serum levels of sex hormones, indicating that they could be an important factor in shaping the microbiota. However, little is known about the effect of regular hormonal fluctuations over the menstrual cycle or CHC-related changes of hormone levels on gut microbiota structure, diversity and dynamics. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of CHCs on human gut microbiota composition. The effect of CHC pill intake on gut microbiota composition was studied in a group of seven healthy pre-menopausal women using the CHC pill, compared to the control group of nine age-matched healthy women that have not used hormonal contraceptives in the 6 months prior to the start of the study. By analysing the gut microbiota composition in both groups during one menstrual cycle, we found that CHC usage is associated with a minor decrease in gut microbiota diversity and differences in the abundance of several bacterial taxa. These results call for further investigation of the mechanisms underlying hormonal and hormonal contraceptive-related changes of the gut microbiota and the potential implications of these changes for women's health. |
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