Beyond the Barrier: Female Genital Schistosomiasis As a Potential Risk Factor for HIV-1 Acquisition

Overview

Journal Acta Trop

Publisher Elsevier

Specialty Tropical Medicine

Date 2020 May 17

PMID 32416076

Citations 28

Authors

A S Sturt

E L Webb

S C Francis

R J Hayes

A L Bustinduy

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) results from egg-deposition in the female reproductive tract primarily by the waterborne parasite Schistosoma (S.) haematobium, and less commonly by Schistosoma (S.) mansoni. FGS affects an estimated 20-56 million women worldwide, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. There is cross-sectional evidence of increased HIV-1 prevalence in schistosomiasis-infected women, but a causal relationship between FGS and either HIV-1 acquisition or transmission has not been fully established. Beyond the pathognomonic breach in the cervicovaginal barrier caused by FGS, this narrative review explores potential mechanisms for a synergistic relationship between S. haematobium infection, FGS, and HIV-1 acquisition through vaginal inflammation and target cell recruitment.

Citing Articles

The burden of visually diagnosed female genital schistosomiasis among women with infertility in the Volta Region of Ghana.

Orish V, Kaba G, Dah A, Maalman R, Amoh M, Appiah-Kubi A Trop Med Health. 2025; 53(1):31.

PMID: 40001167 PMC: 11853701. DOI: 10.1186/s41182-024-00660-x.

Next step towards point-of-care molecular diagnosis of female genital schistosomiasis (FGS): evaluation of an instrument-free LAMP procedure.

van Bergen K, Brienen E, Randrianasolo B, Ramarokoto C, Leutscher P, Kjetland E Front Parasitol. 2025; 3():1297310.

PMID: 39817178 PMC: 11731957. DOI: 10.3389/fpara.2024.1297310.

Association of female genital schistosomiasis and human papillomavirus and cervical pre-cancer: a systematic review.

Sturt A, Omar T, Hansingo I, Kamfwa P, Bustinduy A, Kelly H BMC Womens Health. 2025; 25(1):2.

PMID: 39754189 PMC: 11697648. DOI: 10.1186/s12905-024-03514-0.

Sex as a biological variable in HIV-1 and schistosome co-infection.

Maganga J, Pham K, Changalucha J, Downs J Lancet HIV. 2024; 12(1):e60-e70.

PMID: 39489933 PMC: 11710965. DOI: 10.1016/S2352-3018(24)00234-0.

A Recent Advance in the Diagnosis, Treatment, and Vaccine Development for Human Schistosomiasis.

Chatterji T, Khanna N, Alghamdi S, Bhagat T, Gupta N, Alkurbi M Trop Med Infect Dis. 2024; 9(10).

PMID: 39453270 PMC: 11511416. DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed9100243.

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