title: The microbiome in early life: implications for health outcomes.
abstract: Recent studies have characterized how host genetics, prenatal environment and delivery mode can shape the newborn microbiome at birth. Following this, postnatal factors, such as antibiotic treatment, diet or environmental exposure, further modulate the development of the infant's microbiome and immune system, and exposure to a variety of microbial organisms during early life has long been hypothesized to exert a protective effect in the newborn. Furthermore, epidemiological studies have shown that factors that alter bacterial communities in infants during childhood increase the risk for several diseases, highlighting the importance of understanding early-life microbiome composition. In this review, we describe how prenatal and postnatal factors shape the development of both the microbiome and the immune system. We also discuss the prospects of microbiome-mediated therapeutics and the need for more effective approaches that can reconfigure bacterial communities from pathogenic to homeostatic configurations.
authors.affiliation: Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology. Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tamburini
authors.affiliation: Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology. Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: Immunology Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.|Department of Medicine, Division of Clinical Immunology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Han Chih
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology. Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.|Immunology Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.|Department of Medicine, Division of Clinical Immunology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Jose C
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3970-9856
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Clemente
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002585:Cesarean Section; D002675:Child, Preschool; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric; D004032:Diet; D064806:Dysbiosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D064307:Microbiota; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D019936:Probiotics; D016585:Vaginosis, Bacterial / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents