Infant stool, moderate and late preterm infants, probiotic and prebiotic
The aim of this study was to obtain insight into the deviant and distinctive gut microbiome composition and function throughout infancy in children born moderately and late preterm and their response to microbiome modulation. We characterized the longitudinal development of the gut microbiome from birth to the age of 12 months by metagenomic sequencing in 43 moderate and late preterm children participating in a randomized, controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov/no.NCT00167700) assessing the impact of a probiotic (Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, ATCC 53103, currently Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG) and a prebiotic (galacto-oligosaccharide and polydextrose mixture, 1:1) intervention as compared to a placebo given from 3 to 60 days of life. In addition, 9 full-term, vaginally delivered, breast-fed infants, who also remained healthy long-term were included for reference. Significant differences in taxonomy, but not in functional potential, were found when comparing preterm and full-term infants gut microbiome composition during the first month of life. However, this aberrancy was transient; the gut microbiome of preterm infants resembled that of full-term infants by the age of 6 months. Pro- and prebiotic treatment were found to mitigate the shift in microbiome of preterm infants by accelerating Bifidobacteria-dominated gut microbiome composition in a beta diversity analysis. This study provides intriguing information about the establishment of the gut microbiome in children born moderate and late preterm, representing the majority of children born preterm. Specific pro- and prebiotics may reverse the pro-inflammatory gut microbiome composition during the vulnerable period, when the microbiome is low in resilience and susceptible to environmental exposures and also simultaneously promotes immunological and metabolic maturation.