Changes to Gut Microbiota Following Systemic Antibiotic Administration in Infants

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Pediatric Medicine
• Gastroenterology

Background:

• Long-term antibiotic use is linked to systemic diseases like obesity, allergy, and depression, often due to gut microbiome imbalance.
• The impact of early-life antibiotic exposure on infant gut microbiome development is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the gut microbiome composition in infants following systemic antibiotic treatment.
• To assess alterations in bacterial abundance and diversity in the infant gut microbiome after antibiotic exposure.

Main Methods:

• Fecal samples were collected from 20 infants (under 3 months) who received antibiotics for at least 3 days, 4 weeks post-treatment.
• 34 age-matched healthy infants without antibiotic exposure served as controls.
• 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used to analyze relative bacterial abundance, alpha, and beta diversity.

Main Results:

• Infants treated with antibiotics showed increased relative abundance of Escherichia/Shigella and Bifidobacterium.
• A decreased relative abundance of Bacteroides was observed in the antibiotic-treated group.
• The gut microbiome in the antibiotic-treated group exhibited significantly lower alpha diversity compared to controls.

Conclusions:

• Systemic antibiotic administration in early infancy demonstrably affects gut microbiome composition.
• These alterations in the infant gut microbiome can persist for at least one month post-antibiotic treatment.
• Further long-term studies are necessary to fully understand the lasting consequences of early-life antibiotic exposure on infant gut health and systemic disease risk.