Phenotypic and molecular identification of lactobacilli isolated from vaginal secretions.

Background And Purpose: Twenty lactobacilli isolated from vaginal samples of healthy volunteers were characterized according to polyphasic taxonomy. A broad spectrum of activity and protective properties of these vaginal isolates has been reported.

Methods: Phenotypic and genotypic methods such as random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), species-specific and BOX polymerase chain reaction (PCR), amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA), and 16S rRNA sequence analyses were applied for Lactobacillus spp.