Nicole M. Gilbert, PhD, presented “Covert Pathogenesis in the Urinary Tract” for the Grand Rounds in Urology audience in June, 2020.
How to cite: Gilbert, Nicole M. “Covert Pathogenesis in the Urinary Tract” June, 2020. Accessed Nov 2025. https://grandroundsinurology.com/covert-pathogenesis-in-the-urinary-tract/
Covert Pathogenesis in the Urinary Tract – Summary:
In a conversation with A. Lenore Ackerman, MD, PhD, Section Co-Editor of the Next Generation Microbiome and Urologic Infection Learning Center on Grand Rounds in Urology, Nicole M. Gilbert, PhD, an instructor in the Department of Pediatrics at Washington University School of Medicine, discusses her research linking urogenital microbes to recurrent urinary tract infection (rUTI). Although the bladder was long regarded as sterile in the absence of overt infection, recent research suggests that there is a urinary microbiome and that two commonly found bacteria in the bladder are Gardnerella and Lactobacillus, both of which are also common in the vagina. Dr. Gilbert and her colleagues wanted to investigate how those urogenital microbes affect the bladder, and determined that Gardnerella vaginalis causes urothelial exfoliation, a condition that has been associated with rUTI. Because Gardnerella vaginalis appears able to trigger rUTI even when it is cleared out of the bladder within 12 hours, Dr. Gilbert calls it a covert pathogen, and suggests that further research is needed to find stable indicators of repeat exposure to Gardnerella.
For more information on recurrent UTI and the urinary microbiome, visit our Next Generation Learning Center.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nicole M. Gilbert, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Molecular Microbiology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. She started the Gilbert lab at Washington University, which focuses on the complex interactions between microbes and the female urogenital tract, including conditions like urinary tract infections, bacterial vaginosis, and HPV-associated cancers. The lab’s goals are to understand polymicrobial dynamics at urogenital mucosal surfaces and to determine the mechanisms underlying the associations between certain microbiome states and adverse health outcomes.
