Effects of lactoferrin in 6 patients with refractory bacterial vaginosis

Abstract

We previously reported that lactoferrin (LF) could be effective for preventing preterm delivery and intrauterine infections, based on data derived from mice and rabbits. Here we describe 6 women with a history of multiple pregnancy losses or preterm delivery and refractory bacterial vaginosis, who received prebiotic LF therapy and delivered an infant normally. Five of the women were pregnant and one was not at the time of this study. The Ethics Committee at Showa University Hospital and Showa University Koto Toyosu Hospital approved the therapeutic protocol. Vaginal suppositories and oral prebiotic LF were administered to patients who were refractory to conventional treatment for vaginosis and had a history of late miscarriages and very early preterm delivery due to refractory vaginitis and chorioamnionitis. LF significantly improved the vaginal bacterial flora. Lactobacillus, which was detectable in the vaginas of all patients after one month of LF therapy, gradually became dominant. The findings from these 6 patients suggest that administering LF to humans could help prevent refractory vaginitis, cervical inflammation, and preterm delivery.

Bacterial biota of women with bacterial vaginosis treated with lactoferrin: an open prospective randomized trial

“…Lactoferrin, at two different concentrations (100 mg and 200 mg), was administered to women with BV and its ability to modify the vaginal bacterial biota, both during and after administration, was studied in depth. The results demonstrated that both concentrations significantly increased the level of lactobacilli and decreased pathogenic bacteria such as Gardnerella , Prevotella , and Lachnospira during the treatment, in accordance with previous studies [31,33]. Differences were detected 2 weeks after administration.…”

“…All the women underwent a complete assessment in three scheduled appointments: at baseline (T0), on the 10th day of treatment (treatment: T1), and 2 weeks after the end of lactoferrin administration (post-treatment: T2). Inclusion criteria were sexually active women of reproductive age (18–45 years old) with regular menstrual cycles and with symptomatic acute BV diagnosed according to Amsel’s criteria [33] and Nugent score [34]. The exclusion criteria were age < 18 years; Nugent score < 7; known active infection due to Chlamydia , yeasts, Neisseria gonorrhoeae , or Trichomonas vaginalis ; clinically apparent herpes simplex infection or defined diagnosed human papillomavirus, herpes simplex virus type 2, or human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection; pregnancy or breastfeeding; antibiotic, probiotic, or exogenous hormone treatments; and other gynecological conditions that could cause bleeding (polyps, endometrial hyperplasia, etc.).…”

“…Giunta and co-workers [31] demonstrated that oral administration of lactoferrin 100 mg, twice a day for 1 month, led to the reduction of IL-6 in cervicovaginal fluid and the normalization of vaginal microbiota in women at preterm delivery risk. Otsuki and Imai [33] showed that, in women with a history of multiple pregnancy losses or preterm delivery and refractory BV, lactoferrin administration could improve the vaginal microbiota, preventing both cervical inflammation and preterm delivery. Sessa et al [34] reported that intravaginal administration of lactoferrin resolved asymptomatic Chlamydia trachomatis in six out of seven pregnant women and resulted in normal deliveries.…”

Randomised clinical trial in women with Recurrent Vulvovaginal Candidiasis: Efficacy of probiotics and lactoferrin as maintenance treatment

“…Lactoferrin is a glycoprotein involved in the host protection against pathogen microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses and yeasts, and its levels in vaginal secretions increase significantly during infections such as gonorrhoea, Chlamydia , cervicitis, bacterial vaginosis and trichomoniasis thus highlighting its protective physiological role against pathogens and inflammation. Moreover, both the oral and vaginal administration of lactoferrin have been proven to improve the vaginal microbiota composition by increasing the number of lactobacilli, which contribute to hamper pathogen growth . Evidence shows that it is able to reduce significantly the growth of Candida albicans and C. glabrata .…”

Lactoferrin researchers descend on Nagoya Castle

“…Otsuki and Imai (2017) report that treatment of 6 women at high risk of preterm delivery with bovine Lf (bLf) significantly improved the vaginal microflora, and Sessa et al (2017) report that intravaginal administration of bLf resolved asymptomatic Chlamydia trachomatis in 6 of 7 pregnant women. All of the women treated with bLf in both studies had normal deliveries.…”