Döderlein's Vaginal Bacillus: A Contribution to the Study of the Lacto-Bacilli

Abstract

It is concluded from a study of the morphological and cultural characters of 60 strains of Döderlein's vaginal bacillus that the organism belongs to the lacto-bacillus group of bacteria.Primary culture of Döderlein's bacillus may be readily obtained on lactose blood agar incubated aerobically provided the vaginal flora is of “Grade A” type, but its subsequent propagation on artificial culture media is less likely to be successful.Three morphological types of Döderlein's bacillus are recognised. Cultural and fermentative tests show that these types are all biologically similar.There is no serological homogeneity among the strains of Döderlein's bacillus, although there was some evidence of a serological relationship among the members of the commonest morphological type. The same serological type tends to persist in the vagina throughout pregnancy. Döderlein's bacillus and lacto-bacilli derived from other sources are not serologically identical.

The vaginal mycobiome: A contemporary perspective on fungi in women's health and diseases

“…Candida-Bacteria interactions in the vagina As early as 1930, Doderlein's bacillus, 101 which is now widely known as Lactobacillus, was positively attributed to protection of the vaginal mucosa and a "healthy" microenvironment. 102 Because the lack of Lactobacillus spp.…”

A New Era of the Vaginal Microbiome: Advances Using Next‐Generation Sequencing

“…For many women, this physiological change coincides with and likely mediates a natural increase in the prevalence of species of lactobacilli, which then generally predominate during the reproductive years. The importance of species of the genus Lactobacillus has been appreciated for over a hundred years, dating back to Albert Döderlein’s late-19 th -century discovery of long, thick gram-positive rods in the normal vaginal secretions of premenopausal women [11–13]. Lactobacillus species are able to ferment glycogen, thereby producing lactic acid, which is thought to establish the acidic vaginal environment (i.e.…”

Assessment of microbiota:host interactions at the vaginal mucosa interface

“…Around the same time, Doderlein discovered a bacilli (later attributed to Lactobacillus acidophilus [3]) in vaginal secretions of pregnant women, which was described as having antagonistic effects towards pathogens [4]. It was also noted that vaginal secretions deplete of bacillus were often colonised instead by high numbers of morphologically distinct microorganisms with an elevated pH [5]. These clinical features today would be attributed to symptomatic bacterial vaginosis (BV) [6].…”