Transkingdom Analysis of the Female Reproductive Tract Reveals Bacteriophages form Communities.

The female reproductive tract (FRT) microbiome plays a vital role in maintaining vaginal health. Viruses are key regulators of other microbial ecosystems, but little is known about how the FRT viruses (virome), particularly bacteriophages that comprise the phageome, impact FRT health and dysbiosis. We hypothesize that bacterial vaginosis (BV) is associated with altered FRT phageome diversity, transkingdom interplay, and bacteriophage discriminate taxa.