Lenka Vodstrcil

Dr

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<a href="https://www.monash.edu/medicine/research/supervisorconnect" onclick="target='_blank';">https://www.monash.edu/medicine/research/supervisorconnect</a>

20052024

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Biography

Dr Lenka Vodstrcil [BBiomed Sci, BSci(Hons), PhD] is a Senior Research Fellow and Deputy Head of the Genital Microbiota and Mycoplasma Group at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, School of Translational Medicine, Monash University. She completed a PhD at the University of Melbourne in 2009 and began as a post-doctoral research fellow at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre in 2010.

Lenka has a strong track record with >100 publications, national and international collaborations and impact on treatment guidelines and clinical practice.

Research interests

Lenka leads translational research on women's sexual and reproductive health and sexually transmitted infections which are prone to antimicrobial resistance.

The common vaginal dysbiosis, bacterial vaginosis (BV), is associated with several adverse sequelae including preterm birth and STI and HIV acquisition, but is highly refractory to treatment. Lenka's women's health programme aims to improve post-treatment cure for women with BV and understand the drivers of a non-optimal vaginal microbiome. She currently co-leads an NHMRC-funded multicentre randomised controlled trial, which treats the male partners of women with bacterial vaginosis. If this strategy is effective, it will provide a cheap and short intervention to not only improve BV cure for women, but open up exciting new opportunities for BV prevention, and prevention of the serious complications associated with BV. 

Mycoplasma genitalium is an STI superbug with the propensity to develop antimicrobial resistance. It is associated with gential symptoms in men and women and adverse reporductive health outcomes. Lenka's research into Mycoplasma genitalium assesses the application of novel resistance-guided therapy pathways to treat patients according to the drug-resistance profile and tracks the effectiveness of new treatment strategies. This program aims to maintain a high cure rate, and ensure optimal antimicrobial stewardship.

Lenka is a member of the ARC ITRP Research Hub to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance: https://amrhub.org.au/

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being

Education/Academic qualification

Science, PhD, The expression and regulation of uterine relaxin receptors in pregnancy, University of Melbourne

Jul 2005Nov 2009

Award Date: 5 Dec 2009

Research area keywords

  • bacterial vaginosis
  • vaginal microbiome
  • mycoplasma genitalium
  • women's health
  • genital microbiome
  • sexually transmitted infections

Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

Recent external collaboration on country/territory level. Dive into details by clicking on the dots or