title: Endometrial microbiome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There have been great improvements in assisted reproduction in the recent decade; however, there are still a significant number of chromosomally normal blastocysts that fail to produce live births. The human microbiome is the totality of the microbes and their genomes that exist in and on the host. The understanding of its impact on health and human disease, particularly in human reproduction, is evolving.
  
  
  RESULTS
  New technologies have empowered metagenomic sample analysis that allows for more fully characterizing the reproductive tract microbiome. With these technologies, we have determined not only that sites previously thought to be sterile in fact have robust microbiomes, but also have better characterized the normal and abnormal vaginal and endometrial microbiome.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The understanding of the microbiome in health and human disease, in particular in relation to human reproduction, is in its infancy. As the reproductive tract dysbiosis are better characterized and understood, we may be better equipped to manipulate it more expertly.
authors.affiliation: aReproductive Medicine Associates of New Jersey, Basking Ridge, New Jersey bThomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: Jason M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Franasiak
authors.forename: Richard T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Scott
mesh_terms: D004717:Endometrium / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D064307:Microbiota; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted; D014621:Vagina / Q000382:microbiology