The Journal of Theoretical Fimpology. Volume 3, Issue 4: e20081017-3-4-18. December 6, 2015 (www.fimpology.com)
Embryo, Fetus, and Semen May Be the Unrecognized Non-Maternal Sources of Bacteria in the Amniotic Cavity
Shu-dong Yin
ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-8661-6889
Cory H. E. R. & C. Inc., Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Email: [email protected]
Abstract
Previous studies have proposed three major routes for the pathogenic bacterial accessing to uterus: (1) bacterial ascending into the uterus from the lower tract, which was believed to be the most common route of uterine bacterial infection; (2) bacterial descending into the uterus from the peritoneal cavity; and (3) hematogenous transmission, which included two routes of maternal bacterial hematogenous transmission—(i) from the maternal oral cavity to the amniotic cavity and (ii) from the maternal gut to the amniotic cavity.[1] In generally, the maternal bacteria have been proposed to be the only bacterial source for accounting for bacterial appearance in the amniotic cavity during pregnancy. However, considering the fact that some bacterial species and some subcellular entities including viruses and extracellular vesicles have been found normally in human semen,[2-5] I argued that theoretically, the possibility of seminal bacteria as the non-maternal bacterial source of bacteria to enter the amniotic cavity during pregnancy cannot be excluded.[1] Moreover, in the recent article,[1] I hypothesized for the first time that embryo and fetus may be the other unrecognized non-maternal source of bacteria in the amniotic cavity, which, I will discuss further in this article.