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Review
. 2024 Oct 31;13(11):888.
doi: 10.3390/biology13110888.

The Existence of an Intra-Amniotic Microbiome: Assessing a Controversy

Kumar Uddipto  1 , Julie A Quinlivan  2 , George L Mendz  1
Affiliations
Review

The Existence of an Intra-Amniotic Microbiome: Assessing a Controversy

Kumar Uddipto et al. Biology (Basel). .

Abstract

The existence of intra-amniotic and placental microbiomes during pregnancy has been the source of considerable debate, with research yielding conflicting evidence. This study evaluated investigations into the putative presence of these microbiomes in healthy pregnancies by identifying design and data interpretation issues, particularly concerning contamination in samples with low-density bacterial DNA. Positive findings from diverse populations suggest a consistent presence of microbiota in the intra-amniotic space. Negative conclusions regarding the existence of these prenatal microbiomes emphasise the impact of contamination in the analysis of samples with low-density bacterial DNA. This study concluded that there is no definitive evidence to refute the existence of intra-amniotic microbiomes in healthy pregnancies. Also, it provides suggestions for controlling potential contamination factors in future research on intra-amniotic and placental microbial populations.

Keywords: amplicon sequencing; bacterial taxa; environmental contamination; intra-amniotic microbiome.

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Conflict of interest statement

No author reported conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of the architecture of the study.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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