В последние годы благодаря внедрению метода полимеразной цепной реакции в реальном времени (ПЦР-РВ) значительно расширился спектр микроорганизмов, выявляемых в мочеполовом тракте мужчин, детализировано представление о структуре бактериальных компонентов микробиома. Одной из наименее изученных групп микроорганизмов остается Lactobacillus spp. При ведении пациентов с репродуктивными нарушениями авторами накоплен клинический опыт, демонстрирующий возможную взаимосвязь изменения уровня половых гормонов и основных показателей спермограммы с наличием Lactobacillus spp. в эякуляте. Целью работы было сравнить уровни лютеинизирующего гормона, фолликулостимулирующего гормона, тестостерона, эстрадиола, пролактина, прогестерона, а также глобулина, связывающего половые гормоны (ГСПГ), в сыворотке крови и изменения показателей спермограммы у 210 мужчин при выявлении в эякуляте Lactobacillus spp. и при их отсутствии. В основную группу были включены 105 мужчин, в эякуляте которых по данным ПЦР-РВ выявлены Lactobacillus spp. в количестве (Lg) ≥ 103. Контрольная группа включала 105 мужчин, у которых отсутствовали Lactobacillus spp. и структура бактериального компонента микробиома эякулята соответствовала норме. В основной группе по сравнению с контрольной у мужчин чаще встречались гормональные нарушения: отклонение от нормы уровней трех и более гормонов (р = 0,04), гиперэстрадиолемия (р = 0,05) и повышение уровня ГСПГ (р = 0,01). Установлено, что наличие Lactobacillus spp. в эякуляте мужчин основной группы ассоциировано с олигоастенотератозооспермией (р < 0,01), со снижением концентрации сперматозоидов (р = 0,01), с ухудшением их подвижности (р < 0,01) и нарушением морфологии (р < 0,01). Таким образом, присутствие в эякуляте Lactobacillus spp. может служить дополнительным маркером нарушения гормонального фона и фертильности у мужчин.

The study objective is to compare the rate of detection of various microorganisms in the prostatic fluid and ejaculate using real-time polymerase chain reaction in patients with category IV chronic prostatitis.Materials and methods. Between December of 2016 and July 2019, a prospective study including 81 patients with category IV chronic prostatitis per the National Institutes of Health Prostatitis Syndrome Classification (1999) was performed. The patients referred to the clinic of the Ivanovo State Medical Academy for preconception preparation, infertility or erectile disfunction. At the examination, all patients lacked symptoms characteristic of category II or III chronic prostatitis. Transrectal ultrasound of the prostate, microscopic examination of the prostatic fluid and (or) ejaculate, quantitative examination of urogenital tract microbiota using real-time polymerase chain reaction were performed.Results. Comparison of microbiota of the prostatic fluid and ejaculate showed significant differences in the total amount of bacterial mass: in the prostatic fluid mean titer was 3.7 ± 1.6, in the ejaculate it was 2.6 ± 1.8 (p <0.001). Prostatic fluid contained significantly more of the following microorganisms: Enterobacteriaceae spp./Enterococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus spp., Corynebacterium, Eubacterium, Anaerococcus (p <0.05). No significant differences in the amounts of other microorganisms were observed.Conclusion. The study demonstrates significant heterogeneity of qualitative and quantitative microbiota content in the prostatic fluid and ejaculate. Supposedly, it can be explained by anatomical and physiological characteristics of the prostate, seminal vesicles and periurethral glands that secrete fluid for the ejaculate. The ejaculate contains less microorganisms compared to prostatic fluid which should be taken into account in differential diagnosis of infections of the urogenital tract.The authors declare no conflict of interest.All patients gave written informed consent to participate in the study.

Popularization of the real-time polymerase chain reaction method (RT-PCR), which is a trend of the recent years, allowed to significantly expand of the range of microorganisms that can be detected in the genitourinary tract of men. Moreover, the available picture of the microbiome's bacterial component structure became more detailed. Lactobacillus spp. remains one of the least studied groups of microorganisms. Treating patients with reproductive disorders, the authors have accumulated clinical experience demonstrating the possible relationship between presence of Lactobacillus spp. in the ejaculate and changes in the level of sex hormones and the key values registered with a spermogram. This study aimed to compare the levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, testosterone, estradiol, prolactin, progesterone, and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) in blood serum and changes in spermogram values in 210 men with and without Lactobacillus spp. detected in their ejaculate. The treatment group included 105 men whose ejaculate had Lactobacillus spp. in the amount of (Lg) ≥ 103, as detected by RT-PCR. The control group included 105 men whose ejaculate did not have Lactobacillus spp. detected; the microbiome's bacterial component structure of their ejaculate was normal. Compared to the control group, treatment group had hormonal disorders registered more often: abnormal levels of three or more hormones (p = 0.04), hyperestradiolemia (p = 0.05), increased level of SHBG (p = 0.01). It was established that the presence of Lactobacillus spp. in the ejaculate of treatment group participants is associated with oligoastenoteratozoospermia (p < 0.01), decreased concentration of spermatozoa (p = 0.01), their decreased motility (p < 0.01) morphology abnormalities (p < 0.01). Thus, the presence of Lactobacillus spp. in the ejaculate can be interpreted as an additional marker of hormonal imbalance and fertility dysfunction in men.