Antibodies and vaginal bacteria in HPV-related cervical changes
Official title: Antibody bound bacteria during HPV infection and cervical dysplasia
Funded at Case Western Reserve University · NIH-11398821 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether antibodies bind different vaginal bacteria in women with HPV or cervical cell changes to understand why some women develop more serious lesions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Case Western Reserve University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Cleveland, United States) |
| Project start | August 8, 2024 |
| Project end | July 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $38,363 |
| NIH project number | 3R21CA289927-02S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11398821 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Women who can provide vaginal samples and have known HPV status and cervical pathology results—ranging from normal findings to low-grade or high-grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasia—would be eligible.
✕Less likely to help
People without a cervix, those unable to provide vaginal samples, or those not within the study's recruitment area would not be eligible and would not benefit directly.
What this research studies
If you join, researchers will collect vaginal samples and cervical pathology results from women with and without HPV and with normal tissue, low-grade, or high-grade lesions. They will separate bacteria that are coated with antibodies from those that are not, identify which microbes are present, and analyze their functions using laboratory tests and sequencing. The team will compare the proportion and activity of antibody-bound versus unbound bacteria across these groups to find patterns linked to persistent HPV or progression to more severe cervical disease. Findings could help explain how immune responses and the vaginal microbiome interact in cervical health.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: This could identify microbial or immune markers that predict HPV persistence or progression, helping guide future prevention or treatment strategies.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research has linked the vaginal microbiome to HPV outcomes, but systematically studying which bacteria are bound by antibodies in the reproductive tract is a novel approach with limited prior data.
Where this research is happening
-
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Langel, Stephanie N. — Case Western Reserve University
- Study coordinator: Langel, Stephanie N.
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.