Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

INFECTION

What are bacteria doing in the bladder?

The detection of 78 bacterial species in the urinary tracts of 77 catheterized female patients further emphasizes that the urinary tract is not sterile. However, many questions arise from these findings, not the least of which is what these organisms are doing in the urinary tract.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Thomas-White, K. et al. Culturing of female bladder bacteria reveals an interconnected urogenital microbiota. Nat. Commun. 9, 1557 (2018).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Hanson, L. et al. Probiotics for treatment and prevention of urogenital infections in women: a systematic review. J. Midwifery Womens Health 61, 339–355 (2016).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Urbaniak, C. et al. Microbiota of the breast tissue. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 80, 3007–3014 (2014).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Branton, W. G. et al. Brain microbial populations in HIV/AIDS: α-proteobacteria predominate independent of host immune status. PLoS ONE 8, e54673 (2013).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Goneau, L. W. et al. Selective target inactivation rather than global metabolic dormancy causes antibiotic tolerance in uropathogens. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 58, 2089–2097 (2014).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Ceapa, C. et al. The variable regions of Lactobacillus rhamnosus genomes reveal the dynamic evolution of metabolic and host-adaptation repertoires. Genome Biol. Evol. 8, 1889–1905 (2016).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Macklaim, J. et al. At the crossroads of vaginal health and disease, the genome sequence of in Lactobacillus iners. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci 108 (Suppl. 1), 4688–4695 (2011).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Hagberg, L. et al. in Colonization of the Urinary Tract with Live Bacteria From The Normal Fecal and Urethral Flora in Patients With Recurrent Symptomatic Urinary Tract Infections. (eds Kass E. H. & Svanborg Eden, C.) 194–197 (University of Chicago Press, 1989).

  9. Stapleton, A. E. et al. Randomized, placebo-controlled phase 2 trial of a Lactobacillus crispatus probiotic given intravaginally for prevention of recurrent urinary tract infection. Clin Infect Dis. 52, 1212–1217 (2011).

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  10. Beerepoot, M. A. et al. Lactobacilli versus antibiotics to prevent urinary tract infections: a randomized, double-blind, noninferiority trial in postmenopausal women. Arch Intern Med. 172, 704–712 (2012).

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gregor Reid.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The author declares no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Reid, G. What are bacteria doing in the bladder?. Nat Rev Urol 15, 469–470 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-018-0032-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-018-0032-y

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing