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Antibiotics, birth mode, and diet shape microbiome maturation during early life

Nicholas A Bokulich1, Jennifer Chung1, Thomas Battaglia1

  • 1Department of Medicine, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA.

Science Translational Medicine
|June 17, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Early infant microbiome development is sensitive to disruptions. Antibiotic exposure, C-section, and formula feeding can alter microbial establishment and impact long-term infant health.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Pediatrics
  • Developmental Biology

Background:

  • Early childhood is a critical period for establishing the host microbiome.
  • Factors like antibiotic exposure, cesarean birth, and formula feeding can disrupt this crucial developmental window.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To profile microbial development in U.S. infants during their first two years of life.
  • To identify disturbances in microbiome establishment linked to common early-life exposures.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal cohort study of 43 U.S. infants.
  • Microbiome profiling over the first 24 months of life.
  • Analysis of associations between exposures and microbial patterns.

Main Results:

  • Identified multiple microbiome disturbances related to antibiotic exposures, cesarean section, and formula feeding.
  • Observed altered establishment of maternal bacteria and delayed microbiome maturation.
  • Detected changes in alpha-diversity metrics in response to these exposures.

Conclusions:

  • Early-life exposures significantly perturb the developing infant microbiome.
  • Microbiome development is sensitive to environmental factors, with potential long-term health implications.
  • Understanding these perturbations is key to promoting healthy infant development.

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