# Partial normalization of microbiota dysbiosis in condyloma acuminatum patients following treatment

## TL;DR

This study shows that a traditional treatment for condyloma acuminatum partially restores skin microbiome balance, suggesting a new approach for managing this sexually transmitted disease.

## Contribution

The study is the first to reveal the protective effects of QYXJ in resolving microbiota dysbiosis in condyloma acuminatum patients.

## Key findings

- CA patients showed increased Staphylococcus and Lactobacillus, and decreased Escherichia compared to healthy controls.
- QYXJ treatment reduced microbiota dysbiosis and shifted the skin microbiome toward a healthier state.
- The treatment partially restored microbial diversity and downregulated key metabolic pathways altered in CA patients.

## Abstract

Condyloma acuminatum (CA) is the most common sexually transmitted disease and the presence of microbiota dysbiosis has been observed to promote the progress of the disease. However, the explicit characteristics of microbiota dysbiosis in CA patients have not been well elucidated yet.

We recruited 40 CA patients who received QYXJ (an in-hospital prescription that has been used to treat CA for many years) treatment and 40 healthy controls (HC) in the current study. Before and after two weeks QYXJ administration, the skin microbiome of each patient was assessed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing.

Here, we found increased relative abundances of Staphylococcus and Lactobacillus, whereas a decreased Escherichia in CA patients relative to healthy controls (HC). Moreover, we also observed significant alpha and beta diversity differences between the CA and HC groups, and QYXJ treatment effectivity attenuated these alterations of genus level and microbial diversity in patients with CA. Importantly, further microbial interaction and function analyses revealed the significantly enriched relative abundance of Caldivirga and Streptococcus in microbial community, decreased complexity of microbial interactions and downregulated metabolic pathways in CA patients, including membrane transport, lipid metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism. Remarkably, QYXJ administration partially restored these microbiota dysbiosis, which subsequently shifts microbiomes of patients with CA towards healthy-like microbiota.

This study further confirmed the changes of skin microbiome in CA pathogenesis and firstly revealed the protective effects of QYXJ in microbiota dysbiosis resolution, suggesting its potential role as a novel method for CA treatment.