Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 11, 2025
Intracerebroventricular Delivery of Gut-Derived Microbial Metabolites in Freely Moving Mice
Published on: June 2, 2022
Associations between the gut microbiota at one-year and neurodevelopment in children from the SEPAGES cohort
Aline Davias1, Sarah Lyon-Caen1, Nina Iszatt2
1Environmental Epidemiology applied to Development and Respiratory Health team, Institute for Advanced Biosciences, University Grenoble Alpes, Inserm, CNRS, Grenoble, France.
Insights
The gut microbiota of one-year-old children showed only suggestive links to neurodevelopmental outcomes at ages 2 and 3. Further research is needed to confirm the weak associations between infant gut bacteria and child development.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Pediatrics
Background:
- The microbiota-gut-brain axis describes communication between gut microbes and the central nervous system.
- This axis is poorly understood in general human populations, especially concerning early childhood development.
- Investigating this link in infants is crucial for understanding developmental trajectories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To prospectively examine the relationship between gut microbiota composition in one-year-old children and their neurodevelopmental parameters at ages 2 and 3.
- To identify specific microbial taxa or diversity indices associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes in early childhood.
Main Methods:
- Gut microbiota profiling using 16S rRNA gene sequencing (V3-V4 region) on stool samples from 356 children at 12 months of age.
- Neurodevelopmental assessment using validated tools: CBCL at 2 years, and SRS-2, BRIEF-P, and WPPSI-IV at 3 years.
- Statistical analyses included multiple linear regression for diversity indices and taxonomic abundance, and PERMANOVA for β-diversity.
Main Results:
- No significant associations were found between microbial alpha-diversity or beta-diversity indices and neurodevelopmental parameters.
- Suggestive, but not statistically significant after multiple comparison correction, associations were noted for specific bacterial phyla and genera.
- Certain bacteria were tentatively linked to socio-emotional development or executive function challenges, but these findings require larger cohort validation.
Conclusions:
- In a generally healthy cohort, the gut microbiota composition of one-year-olds showed only weak, suggestive associations with neurodevelopmental scores at 2 and 3 years.
- The current study highlights the need for larger, more comprehensive investigations to elucidate the potential subtle connections within the infant microbiota-gut-brain axis.
- Further research is warranted to confirm these preliminary findings and explore the mechanisms underlying the gut microbiota's influence on early neurodevelopment.
Abstract:
Fundamental research indicates a communication between the gut microbiota and the central nervous system, referred to as the microbiota-gut-brain axis. This link is little characterized in humans in the general population. We prospectively investigated the relationships between the gut microbiota composition of one-year-old children and neurodevelopment parameters at 2 and 3 years of age. Within the SEPAGES French couple-child cohort, we profiled gut microbiota by sequencing the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene from stool samples in 356 children at 12 months of age. We later assessed children's neurodevelopment through validated tests (CBCL at 2 years, and SRS-2, BRIEF-P and WPPSI-IV at 3 years). Microbial α-diversity indices, the 4 most abundant phyla, and the 46 most abundant genera were analyzed for their relations with neurodevelopmental parameters using multiple linear regression, while associations of β-diversity with neurodevelopment were examined through PERMANOVA tests. α- and β-diversity indices were not associated with neurodevelopmental parameters in children. Suggestive associations were observed with taxonomy, but not maintained after correction for multiple comparisons: phyla Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes tended to be associated with higher socio-emotional neurodevelopment assessed with different sub-scores; phylum Firmicutes with increased plan and organization problems; genera Lactococcus, Coprococcus, Oscillibacter, Clostridium XVIII, Veillonella, Parabacteroides, Subdoligranulum and Saccharibacteria genera incertae sedis with lower socio-emotional neurodevelopment, while genera Enterococcus and Butyricicoccus tended to be associated with higher socio-emotional neurodevelopment, assessed with different sub-scores. Within this generally healthy population, only suggestive associations were observed between gut microbiota composition and neurodevelopmental scores at 2 and 3 years. Larger studies are needed to examine a possibly weak link between the gut microbiota of one-year-old children and their neurodevelopment.
Related Concept Videos
01:23Anatomy of the Intestines
Small Intestines
The small intestine is an ~7 meter-long tube with an inner diameter of just 2.5 cm. Since most nutrients are absorbed here, the inner lining of the...
01:05Physiology of Enteric Nervous System and Gut Health