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Oral Biofilm Sampling for Microbiome Analysis in Healthy Children
Published on: December 31, 2017
A cross-sectional comparative study of gut bacterial community of Indian and Finnish children
Shreyas V Kumbhare1,2, Himanshu Kumar3, Somak P Chowdhury2,4
1Department of Microbiology, R.C. Patel Arts, Science, and Commerce College, Shirpur, Dist. Dhule, Maharashtra, 425405, India.
Insights
Indian and Finnish children exhibit distinct gut bacterial communities. Host factors like FUT2 status and birth mode significantly influence gut microbiome composition differently across these populations.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Human Gut Microbiome Research
- Pediatric Gut Health
Background:
- The human gut microbiome's development is critical, yet poorly understood in non-Western pediatric populations.
- Environmental factors significantly shape gut microbiota composition, necessitating geographically diverse studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare gut bacterial diversity in Indian and Finnish children.
- To investigate the impact of FUT2 secretor status and birth mode on gut microbiome composition in these distinct populations.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of gut bacterial communities in Indian and Finnish children (ages 13-14).
- Utilized multiple profiling techniques to assess microbial diversity.
- Examined the influence of host factors including FUT2 secretor status and mode of birth.
Main Results:
- Significant differences observed in gut bacterial community structure between Indian and Finnish children.
- Finnish children showed higher abundance of Blautia and Bifidobacterium.
- Indian children exhibited predominant Prevotella and Megasphaera genera.
- FUT2 status and birth mode demonstrated a significant, population-specific influence on gut bacterial taxa.
Conclusions:
- Gut microbiome composition varies significantly between Indian and Finnish pediatric populations.
- Host-specific factors like FUT2 status and birth mode play a crucial role in shaping the gut microbiome, with differing effects across geographic locations.
Abstract:
The human gut microbiome plays a crucial role in the compositional development of gut microbiota. Though well documented in western pediatrics population, little is known about how various host conditions affect populations in different geographic locations such as the Indian subcontinent. Given the impact of distinct environmental conditions, our study assess the gut bacterial diversity of a small cohort of Indian and Finnish children and investigated the influence of FUT2 secretor status and birth mode on the gut microbiome of these populations. Using multiple profiling techniques, we show that the gut bacterial community structure in 13-14-year-old Indian (n = 47) and Finnish (n = 52) children differs significantly. Specifically, Finnish children possessed higher Blautia and Bifidobacterium, while genera Prevotella and Megasphaera were predominant in Indian children. Our study also demonstrates a strong influence of FUT2 and birth mode variants on specific gut bacterial taxa, influence of which was noticed to differ between the two populations under study.
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