Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Oct 28, 2020
Date Accepted: Jan 20, 2021
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Gut Microbes and Sexual Desire: Online Recruitment of Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder Women for a Study on Gut Microbial Composition
ABSTRACT
Background:
The gut microbiome is receiving considerable attention as a potentially modifiable risk factor and therapeutic target for numerous mental and neurological diseases.
Objective:
The present study aimed to explore and assess the difference in the composition of gut microbes and fecal metabolites between women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) and healthy controls.
Methods:
We employed online recruitment method to enroll “hard-to-reach” HSDD populations. After a stringent diagnostic and exclusion process based on DSM-IV criteria, fecal samples collected from 24 HSDD women and 22 age-matched healthy controls were subjected to microbiome analysis using 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing, and metabolome analysis using untargeted liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry.
Results:
We found a decreased abundance of Ruminococcaceae and increased abundance of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus among women with HSDD. Fecal samples from women with HSDD showed significantly altered metabolic signatures compared with healthy controls. The abundance of Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, and several fecal metabolites correlated negatively with the sexual desire score, while the number of Ruminococcaceae correlated positively with the sexual desire score in all subjects.
Conclusions:
Our analysis of fecal samples from women with HSDD and healthy controls identified significantly different gut microbes and metabolic signatures. These preliminary findings could be useful for developing strategies to adjust the level of human sexual desire by modifying gut microbiota. Furthermore, we found that online recruitment methods are effective tools to reach “hard-to-reach” populations for gut microbes studies if they are associated with sensitive health concerns.
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