Composition and Method for Modulating and Maintaining Vaginal Bacterial Flora and Vaginal Acidity

Abstract

The present invention relates to the use of benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt in combination with saccharide(s) as active components in the manufacture of a vaginal composition for modulating vaginal flora and vaginal acidity, thereby maintaining the pH value of vaginal secretion within a range from 3.5 to 4.5; and the present invention further relates to a vaginal composition and a method for modulating and maintaining normal vaginal flora and vaginal acidity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention relates to the use of benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt in combination with saccharide(s) as active components for preparing a vaginal composition for modulating vaginal bacterial flora and vaginal acidity, thereby maintaining the pH value of vaginal secretion within the range from 3.5 to 4.5; the present invention further relates to a vaginal composition, which can be a cleaning—nursing product, a deodorizing agent, a cosmetic, a disinfectant composition, or a pharmaceutical composition; and the present invention further relates to a method for modulating vaginal bacterial flora and vaginal acidity, thereby maintaining the pH value of vaginal secretion within the range from 3.5 to 4.5.BACKGROUND ART[0002]The surface of female vaginal mucous is suitable for microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, etc. to inhabit. The dominant bacteria inhabited on healthy vaginal mucous surface are large Gram-positive rods, usually called “vaginal normal ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0011]The object of the present invention is to provide a composition for modulating vaginal flora and vaginal acidity in order to maintain the pH value of vaginal secretion within the range from 3.5 to 4.5, and a use of the composition for cleaning-nursing vagina, improving leucorrhea property, eliminating or alleviating the fishy smell of leucorrhea, and eliminating or alleviating complaints such as pruritus vulvae, vulvar causalgia and so on, thereby treating Lactobacillosis, Cytolytic vaginosis, Candidal vaginitis, Bacterial vaginosis, vaginal dysbacteriosis, or other vaginal diseases.

[0012]For seeking a composition capable of modulating and maintaining normal vaginal flora and vaginal acidity, the inventors conducted deep and wide researches. The study and experiments on products, medicines and therapeutic methods in the prior art indicate that there is not a product and method that can inhibit the over-production of acids by lactobacilli and can also promote lactobacilli when they are reduced in amount. There is not a product and method that can reduce vaginal acidity when it is excessively strong and can also increase vaginal acidity when it is reduced and weak, thereby continuously maintaining the vaginal pH value within the range from 3.5 to 4.5. After experiments and deep studying, the inventors of the present invention surprisingly found that benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt exhibited relatively strong inhibition effect on the growth and acid-production of lactobacilli under a relatively low pH value (e.g., pH<4.0), and the lower the pH value, the stronger the inhibition effect. However, the inhibition effect on the growth and acid-production of lactobacilli became weak under a relatively high pH value (e.g., pH>4.6), and the higher the pH value, the weaker the inhibition effect.

[0013]In particularly, the inventors of the present invention surprisingly found that a novel composition comprising benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt in combination with saccharide(s) was able to modulate vaginal flora and vaginal acidity. When vagina contained less lactobacilli and more Gram-negative rods and cocci and vaginal secretion had a pH value higher than its normal range, benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt exhibited weak inhibition effect on lactobacilli so that lactobacilli grew and produced acids under the stimulation of saccharide and decreased the pH value of vaginal secretion; while when lactobacilli over produced acids and vaginal secretion had a pH value lower than its normal range, benzoic acid and / or its sodium salt exhibited strong inhibition effect on lactobacilli so that lactobacilli produced less acids and the pH value of vaginal secretion increased. Thus, whatever was the original vaginal flora and vaginal acidity, the composition of the present invention could maintain lactobacilli as the dominant bacteria in vagina and maintain the pH value of vaginal secretion within the range from 3.5 to 4.5.

Problems solved by technology

There is not a product and method that can reduce vaginal acidity when it is excessively strong and can also increase vaginal acidity when it is reduced and weak, thereby continuously maintaining the vaginal pH value within the range from 3.5 to 4.5.

However, the inhibition effect on the growth and acid-production of lactobacilli became weak under a relatively high pH value (e.g., pH>4.6), and the higher the pH value, the weaker the inhibition effect.