Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 11, 2025

Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction-based Analyses of Murine Intestinal Microbiota After Oral Antibiotic Treatment
08:33

Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction-based Analyses of Murine Intestinal Microbiota After Oral Antibiotic Treatment

Published on: November 17, 2018

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Antibiotics Effects on the Fecal Metabolome in Preterm Infants

Laura Patton1, Nan Li1, Timothy J Garrett2

  • 1Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610-0296, USA.

Metabolites
|August 23, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Early antibiotic exposure in preterm infants alters gut metabolites, impacting vitamin, bile acid, amino acid, and neurotransmitter pathways. Further research is needed to understand these effects and guide antibiotic use.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Medicine
  • Microbiome Research
  • Metabolomics

Background:

  • Preterm infants (<33 weeks gestation) are vulnerable to gut dysbiosis.
  • Antibiotic use in early life can disrupt the developing infant gut microbiome.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of early antibiotic exposure on fecal metabolites in preterm infants.
  • To identify specific metabolic pathways affected by antibiotics within the first 48 hours of life.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective pilot study involving 19 preterm infants.
  • Weekly collection of fecal samples for metabolomic analysis.
  • Comparison of metabolite profiles between antibiotic-exposed and non-exposed infants.

Main Results:

  • Significant differences in fecal metabolites were observed between the two groups.
  • Antibiotic exposure altered pathways including vitamin biosynthesis, bile acid metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and neurotransmitter synthesis.
  • 123 stool samples were analyzed using metabolomics.

Conclusions:

  • Early-life antibiotic exposure in preterm infants significantly alters intestinal metabolites.
  • Findings suggest a need for multi-omic studies to elucidate mechanisms and inform judicious antibiotic stewardship in neonates.

Keywords:
antibioticsmetabolomepreterm infants

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