Cervicovaginal lipid mediator profiles during high-risk HPV infection associated with subsequent viral clearance or persistence: an exploratory pilot study
- 1Department of Medical, Oral, and Biotechnology Science, University “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
- 2Center for Advanced Studies and Technology (CAST), University “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
- 3Department of Pediatrics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States
Abstract
BackgroundHigh-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the primary cause of cervical cancer, whereas most infections are spontaneously cleared. Although local immune and microbial factors associated with HPV outcomes have been investigated, the contribution of lipid mediators within the cervicovaginal microenvironment remains poorly characterized.MethodsCervicovaginal wash samples from 30 participants in a prospective longitudinal HPV cohort were analyzed by targeted liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Samples were obtained from HPV-negative women, HPV-positive women who were negative for the relevant HPV type at the subsequent visit (subsequent-clearance group), and HPV-positive women in whom the same HPV type remained detectable at the subsequent visit.ResultsSix lipid mediators were detected in cervicovaginal wash samples. During HPV infection, women with subsequent clearance had higher measured concentrations of total 12-HETE and total 14-HDHA than HPV-negative women. In the secondary percentage-based analysis, the relative contribution of PGE2 was lower in the subsequent-clearance group than in both the HPV-negative and subsequent-persistence groups, while the relative contribution of total 14-HDHA was higher in the subsequent-persistence group than in HPV-negative women. Direct comparison of correlation coefficients identified an opposite TxB2–14-HDHA relationship in subsequent clearance and persistence.ConclusionsHigher cervicovaginal concentrations of total 12-HETE and total 14-HDHA during HPV infection were associated with clearance of the relevant HPV type at the subsequent visit. The opposite TxB2–total 14-HDHA associations observed in subsequent clearance and persistence further suggest outcome-associated differences in lipid-mediator coordination. These exploratory findings identify lipid mediators as candidate correlates of HPV outcomes.
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BibTeX
@article{mucci2026cervicovaginal,
title = {{Cervicovaginal lipid mediator profiles during high-risk HPV infection associated with subsequent viral clearance or persistence: an exploratory pilot study}},
author = {Matteo Mucci and Matteo Mucci and Antonio Recchiuti and Antonio Recchiuti and Anna-Barbara Moscicki and Domenico Mattoscio and Domenico Mattoscio},
journal = {Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fcimb.2026.1954769},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2026.1954769},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Cervicovaginal lipid mediator profiles during high-risk HPV infection associated with subsequent viral clearance or persistence: an exploratory pilot study
AU - Matteo Mucci
AU - Matteo Mucci
AU - Antonio Recchiuti
AU - Antonio Recchiuti
AU - Anna-Barbara Moscicki
AU - Domenico Mattoscio
AU - Domenico Mattoscio
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology
DO - 10.3389/fcimb.2026.1954769
UR - https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2026.1954769
AB - BackgroundHigh-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the primary cause of cervical cancer, whereas most infections are spontaneously cleared. Although local immune and microbial factors associated with HPV outcomes have been investigated, the contribution of lipid mediators within the cervicovaginal microenvironment remains poorly characterized.MethodsCervicovaginal wash samples from 30 participants in a prospective longitudinal HPV cohort were analyzed by targeted liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Samples were obtained from HPV-negative women, HPV-positive women who were negative for the relevant HPV type at the subsequent visit (subsequent-clearance group), and HPV-positive women in whom the same HPV type remained detectable at the subsequent visit.ResultsSix lipid mediators were detected in cervicovaginal wash samples. During HPV infection, women with subsequent clearance had higher measured concentrations of total 12-HETE and total 14-HDHA than HPV-negative women. In the secondary percentage-based analysis, the relative contribution of PGE2 was lower in the subsequent-clearance group than in both the HPV-negative and subsequent-persistence groups, while the relative contribution of total 14-HDHA was higher in the subsequent-persistence group than in HPV-negative women. Direct comparison of correlation coefficients identified an opposite TxB2–14-HDHA relationship in subsequent clearance and persistence.ConclusionsHigher cervicovaginal concentrations of total 12-HETE and total 14-HDHA during HPV infection were associated with clearance of the relevant HPV type at the subsequent visit. The opposite TxB2–total 14-HDHA associations observed in subsequent clearance and persistence further suggest outcome-associated differences in lipid-mediator coordination. These exploratory findings identify lipid mediators as candidate correlates of HPV outcomes.
SN - 2235-2988
ER -