The gut microbiome and early-life growth in a population with high prevalence of stunting

Area of Science:

• Microbiome research
• Child development
• Global health

Background:

• Child stunting is a global issue linked to infectious diseases and developmental problems.
• The early-life gut microbiome is increasingly recognized for its role in child growth via immune, metabolic, and endocrine pathways.

Purpose of the Study:

• To map the gut microbiome assembly in Zimbabwean infants from 1-18 months.
• To investigate the microbiome's response to water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH), and infant and young child feeding (IYCF) interventions.
• To identify microbiome features associated with child growth and predict growth outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Whole metagenomic sequencing of gut microbiome samples from 335 children in rural Zimbabwe.
• Analysis of data from the Sanitation, Hygiene, Infant Nutrition Efficacy Trial (SHINE).
• Application of machine learning models (XGBoost) to assess microbiome features' predictive power for growth.

Main Results:

• The gut microbiome assembly was largely programmed and unresponsive to the SHINE trial interventions.
• Maternal HIV infection was associated with an over-diversified and over-mature microbiome in uninfected children, with reduced Bifidobacterium species.
• Microbiome taxonomic features poorly predicted child growth, but functional features, like B-vitamin and nucleotide biosynthesis pathways, moderately predicted growth.

Conclusions:

• Early-life gut microbiome assembly is robust and not easily altered by standard interventions aimed at improving growth.
• Maternal HIV status significantly impacts the infant gut microbiome composition and maturity.
• Targeting specific functional pathways within the gut microbiome may offer novel strategies to address child undernutrition.