{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,20]],"date-time":"2026-08-20T13:29:10Z","timestamp":1787232550830,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":56,"publisher":"American Society for Microbiology","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,20]],"date-time":"2026-08-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787184000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,20]],"date-time":"2026-08-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787184000000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/non-commercial-tdm-license"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.asm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["J Bacteriol"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,20]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title\/>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common, recurrent cause of abnormal vaginal discharge that is associated with an increased risk of sexually transmitted infections and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Despite its clinical significance, the pathogenesis of BV remains incompletely understood, limiting the effectiveness of current interventions. Although the\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                      genus has been proposed to play a pivotal role in BV pathogenesis via biofilm initiation, it was initially considered monotypic. This paradigm shifted with the recognition of species heterogeneity within the\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                      genus. Here, we examined\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">in vitro<\/jats:italic>\n                      biofilm growth and proteomes of a representative isolate from each of three\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                      species:\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. vaginalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      ,\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. leopoldii<\/jats:italic>\n                      , and\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. piotii<\/jats:italic>\n                      .\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. leopoldii<\/jats:italic>\n                      and\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. piotii<\/jats:italic>\n                      formed more robust biofilms compared to\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. vaginali<\/jats:italic>\n                      s, with higher biomass, suggesting differences in extracellular matrix composition. Proteomic analysis identified significant differences in functional pathways and virulence proteins among the studied isolates. Cysteine synthase (CysK), implicated in cysteine synthesis and potentially possessing secondary functions, was enriched in the more robust\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. leopoldii<\/jats:italic>\n                      and\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. piotii<\/jats:italic>\n                      biofilms, suggesting a possible role in biofilm formation. Cytolysins were more abundant in the thinner\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. vaginalis<\/jats:italic>\n                      biofilms, whereas immune evasion proteins were more abundant in\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. leopoldii<\/jats:italic>\n                      biofilms. Adhesion and glycogen-degrading proteins varied in type and abundance across species. These findings reveal functional heterogeneity among the tested isolates and provide insight into how certain\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                      isolates establish biofilms. Targeting virulence factors identified in this study may offer novel strategies to disrupt\n                      <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                      biofilm formation to improve management of BV.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                    <jats:sec>\n                      <jats:title>IMPORTANCE<\/jats:title>\n                      <jats:p>\n                        Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a leading cause of abnormal vaginal discharge, associated with high post-treatment recurrence.\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                        species play a central role in BV via initiation of polymicrobial biofilms, yet species-specific contributions remain poorly understood. This work demonstrates that tested isolates of\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. leopoldii<\/jats:italic>\n                        and\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. piotii<\/jats:italic>\n                        form more robust biofilms compared to\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">G. vaginalis<\/jats:italic>\n                        and differentially produce proteins associated with immune evasion, adhesion, and biofilm formation. Certain proteins were enriched in the more robust biofilm producers, suggestive of differences that may contribute to strain-specific biofilm formation. By demonstrating fundamental differences among the studied isolate biofilms, these findings highlight\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                        heterogeneity and provide a foundation for future studies aimed at targeting\n                        <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Gardnerella<\/jats:italic>\n                        biofilm formation in BV.\n                      <\/jats:p>\n                    <\/jats:sec>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1128\/jb.00416-25","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,20]],"date-time":"2026-07-20T14:00:00Z","timestamp":1784556000000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/asmj-crossmark-policy-page","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Comparative proteomics reveal striking differences in biofilm formation and virulence potential of\n                    <i>Gardnerella leopoldii<\/i>\n                    ,\n                    <i>G. piotii<\/i>\n                    , and\n                    <i>G. vaginalis<\/i>\n                    isolates"],"prefix":"10.1128","volume":"208","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6456-2836","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Elinor","family":"Shvartsman","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02gfys938","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Medicine, Section of Infectious Diseases, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02gfys938","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chris","family":"Grant","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peter","family":"McQueen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stuart","family":"McCorrister","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Garrett","family":"Westmacott","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Paul","family":"Sandstrom","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/02gfys938","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba","place":["Winnipeg, Canada"]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/023xf2a37","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Center, Public Health Agency of Canada","place":["Winnipeg, 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