ABO blood group antigens influence host-microbe interactions and risk of early spontaneous preterm birth.

ABSTRACT: The mechanisms by which vaginal microbiota shape spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB) risk remain poorly defined. Using electronic clinical records data from 74,913 maternities in conjunction with metaxanomic (n = 596) and immune profiling (n = 314) data, we show that the B blood group phenotype associates with increased risk of sPTB and adverse vaginal microbiota composition. The O blood group associates with sPTB in women who have a combination of a previous history of sPTB, an adverse vaginal microbial composition and pro-inflammatory cervicovaginal milieu. In contrast, women of blood group A have a higher prevalence of vaginal Lactobacillus crispatus, a lower risk of sPTB, with sPTB cases showing no association with vaginal microbiota composition or inflammation. We found that cervicovagin

SUBMITTER: Mountain KE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12423329 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature