stool sample of paired mother-infant for 16S rRNA sequencing analysis
The gut microbiome is considered to be the "second brain" of the human body and plays an important role in human health, which is influenced by the mode of delivery , feeding regimen, dietary structure, antibiotics, and environmental factors, etc. Early life is a critical window for the colonization and development of the human gut microbiome. Investigating the effects of prenatal exposure to nutrition-toxic elements on the colonization and development of the gut microbiome in early life may provide a scientific basis for using the gut microbiome as a target organ for long-term, low-dose exposure to environmental chemicals. The main objective of this study was to explore the association between prenatal exposure to nutrition-toxic element on the composition and diversity of the infant gut microbiome and its dynamics. The exploration of associations combined linear regression model, permutational multivariate analysis of variance and linear discriminant analysis effect size.