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Published on: August 7, 2017
Bacteriological and Immunological Profiling of Meconium and Fecal Samples from Preterm Infants: A Two-Year Follow-Up
Marta Gómez1,2, Laura Moles3, Irene Espinosa-Martos4
1Departamento de Nutrición, Bromatología y Tecnología de los Alimentos, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain. marta_gmz@hotmail.com.
Insights
Preterm infants
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Immunology
- Neonatal Medicine
Background:
- Abnormal gut microbiota in preterm infants can impact immune development and long-term health.
- Few studies track the fecal microbiota evolution in preterm infants post-discharge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the long-term evolution of gut microbiota and immune profiles in preterm infants.
- To compare infant gut bacteria and immune markers from neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) stay to age 2 years.
Main Methods:
- Phylogenetic microarray analysis of fecal samples from 16 two-year-old preterm infants.
- Comparison with meconium and early fecal samples from the same infants.
- Quantification of cytokines, chemokines, growth factors, and immunoglobulins in fecal samples.
Main Results:
- Two-year-old preterm infants showed increased bacterial diversity and reduced inter-individual variability compared to early samples.
- Hospital-associated bacteria from NICU stay were replaced by adult-like gut genera by age 2.
- Distinct immune profiles were observed between meconium and fecal samples, indicating varying gut immune maturation.
Conclusions:
- The gut microbiota of preterm infants undergoes significant changes, shifting towards an adult-like composition by age two.
- Gut immune maturation in preterm infants is dynamic and reflects different stages of development over time.
- These findings highlight the long-term impact of early gut colonization on preterm infant health.
Abstract:
An abnormal colonization pattern of the preterm gut may affect immune maturation and exert a long-term influence on the intestinal bacterial composition and host health. However, follow-up studies assessing the evolution of the fecal microbiota of infants that were born preterm are very scarce. In this work, the bacterial compositions of fecal samples, obtained from sixteen 2-year-old infants were evaluated using a phylogenetic microarray; subsequently, the results were compared with those obtained in a previous study from samples of meconium and feces collected from the same infants while they stayed in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In parallel, the concentration of a wide range of cytokines, chemokines, growth factors and immunoglobulins were determined in meconium and fecal samples. Globally, a higher bacterial diversity and a lower interindividual variability were observed in 2-year-olds' feces, when compared to the samples obtained during their first days of life. Hospital-associated fecal bacteria, that were dominant during the NICU stay, seemed to be replaced, two years later, by genera, which are usually predominant in the healthy adult microbiome. The immune profile of the meconium and fecal samples differed, depending on the sampling time, showing different immune maturation statuses of the gut.
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