Oral colostrum priming shortens hospitalization without changing the immunomicrobial milieu.
Oral colostrum priming (OCP) after birth in preterm infants is associated with improved weight gain and modification of the oral immunomicrobial environment. We hypothesized that OCP would modify salivary immune peptides and the oral microbiota in preterm infants.



We conducted a prospective, randomized clinical trial to determine the effects of OCP on salivary immune peptide representation in preterm infants (<32 weeks completed gestation at birth). Saliva samples were collected before and after OCP. Salivary immune peptide representation was determined via mass spectroscopy. Oral microbiota representation was determined via sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene.



Neonates who received OCP (n=48) had a 16-day reduction in the median length of hospitalization as compared with infants who did not receive OCP (n=51). No differences in salivary immune peptide sequence representation before OCP between groups were found. Longitudinal changes in peptides were detected (lysozyme C, immunoglobulin A, lactoferrin) but were limited to a single peptide difference (α-defensin 1) between primed and unprimed infants after OCP. We found no difference in microbial diversity between treatment groups at any time point, but diversity decreased significantly over time in both groups. OCP treatment marginally modified oral taxa with a decline in abundance of Streptococci in the OCP group at 30 days of life.



OCP had neither an effect on the salivary peptides we examined nor on overall oral bacterial diversity and composition. Infants who received OCP had a reduced length of hospitalization and warrants further investigation.
Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
J
J
Romano-Keeler
Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, and Microbiome Core Facility, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
M A
MA
Azcarate-Peril
Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
J-H
JH
Weitkamp
Department of Biostatistics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
J C
JC
Slaughter
Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA; The Mass Spectrometry Research Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
W H
WH
McDonald
Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
S
S
Meng
Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA.
M S
MS
Latuga
Departments of Pediatrics, Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.
J L
JL
Wynn
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification; D003126:Colostrum / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000032:analysis; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature / Q000276:immunology; D007781:Lactoferrin / Q000032:analysis; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D064307:Microbiota; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D009113:Muramidase / Q000032:analysis; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D009113:Muramidase; C514728:lysozyme C, human; D007781:Lactoferrin
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