The microbiota as a modulator of mucosal inflammation and HIV/HPV pathogenesis: From association to causation

Although the microbiota has largely been associated with the pathogenesis of viral infections, most studies using omics techniques are correlational and hypothesis-generating. The mechanisms affecting the immune responses to viral infections are still being fully understood. Here we focus on the two most important sexually transmitted persistent viruses, HPV and HIV. Sophisticated omics techniques are boosting our ability to understand microbiota-pathogen-host interactions from a functional perspective by surveying the host and bacterial protein and metabolite production using systems biology approaches. However, while these strategies have allowed describing interaction networks to identify potential novel microbiota-associated biomarkers or therapeutic targets to prevent or treat infectious diseases, the analyses are typically based on highly dimensional datasets —thousands of features in small cohorts of patients—. As a result, we are far from getting to their clinical use. Here we provide a broad overview of how the microbiota influences the immune responses to HIV and HPV disease. Furthermore, we highlight experimental approaches to understand better the microbiota-host-virus interactions that might increase our potential to identify biomarkers and therapeutic agents with clinical applications.