Journal of Inflammation Research

The Urogenital Microbiome and Inflammation: From Causal Associations to Therapeutic Innovations

The Journal of Inflammation Research is pleased to welcome you to submit your research to the Article Collection "The Urogenital Microbiome and Inflammation: From Causal Associations to Therapeutic Innovations".

The historical dogma that urine is sterile has been fundamentally challenged by the advent of next-generation sequencing and advanced culture-independent techniques. The urogenital tract, encompassing the kidneys, ureters, bladder, and urethra, harbors a complex and dynamic microbial community—the urogenital microbiome. Far from being passive bystanders, these resident microorganisms play a pivotal role in maintaining mucosal homeostasis, modulating local immune responses, and defending against uropathogen colonization. However, a disruption of this symbiotic relationship, termed dysbiosis, is increasingly recognized as a critical, and potentially causal, factor in a spectrum of inflammatory and infectious diseases. These include recurrent urinary tract infections (rUTIs), chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), and even the progression of urological malignancies. Furthermore, emerging evidence points to a distant “gut-urinary tract axis,” suggesting that intestinal microbial metabolites and immune signals can profoundly influence inflammation and pathology within the kidneys and bladder. Despite these groundbreaking discoveries, a comprehensive understanding of the precise causal mechanisms driving or perpetuating inflammation remains elusive. This hinders the translation of these findings into effective clinical strategies.

The objective of this Article Collection is to systematically investigate the pathophysiological roles of the urogenital microbiome in inflammatory urological conditions, aiming to translate mechanistic insights into actionable diagnostic and therapeutic innovations. By moving beyond mere correlational studies to establish causation, and by focusing on the host-microbe crosstalk, this series seeks to lay the groundwork for a new era of precision medicine in urology, shifting the paradigm from broad-spectrum antimicrobial approaches to targeted, microbiome-centered interventions.

Researchers are welcome to submit original research, reviews, and perspectives that address the following areas, though these are not limited to the following:

• High-resolution characterization of the urogenital microbiome
• The gut-urinary tract axis in inflammation
• Host-microbe immune crosstalk
• Microbiome as a driver of chronic inflammation and fibrosis
• Microbiome and the pathogenesis of recurrent UTIs
• Novel therapeutic strategies targeting the microbiome:
• Microbiome-informed biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis
• The microbiome's influence on urological cancer immunity
• Methodological advances and standardization

By synthesizing cutting-edge findings and expert perspectives from microbiology, immunology, urology, and bioinformatics, this Article Collection aims to consolidate the current state of knowledge, define key unanswered questions, and forge a path forward. The ultimate goal is to catalyze a paradigm shift in the management of inflammatory urological diseases, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and providing the theoretical foundation and practical strategies for moving from antimicrobial stewardship to comprehensive microbiome-based diagnostics, therapeutics, and prevention.

Keywords: urogenital microbiome, urinary tract infection, chronic prostatitis, interstitial cystitis, gut-bladder axis, dysbiosis, inflammation, phage therapy, probiotics, biomarkers, host-microbe interactions, recurrent UTIs

Meet the Guest Advisor

Dr. Wenjian Li possesses a substantial history of clinical, research, and teaching practice in the domain of urology. His research interests are focused on the study of inflammatory regulatory networks and the mechanisms of immune microenvironmental remodeling in urological diseases and metabolic nephropathy, with a particular emphasis on the pathogenesis of urolithiasis and the progression of diabetic nephropathy.