Cervicovaginal microbial communities and hrHPV infections

Circular probes-based RNA sequencing (CiRNAseq) is a novel sequencing technology that allows microbiome profiling at the species' taxonomic resolution. We applied CiRNAseq on a large cohort of cervical smears to determine microbial communities in the cervicovaginal microbiome (CVM). Moreover, we determined the clinical relevance of these communities during hrHPV infections and hrHPV-induced cervical disease. This new classification of microbial communities provides a better understanding of the CVM in women's cervical health and disease, and it will help elucidate the role of the microbiome in hrHPV-induced carcinogenesis.