1. The Fecal Microbial Community of Breast-fed Infants from Armenia and Georgia.
- Author
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Lewis, Zachery T, Sidamonidze, Ketevan, Tsaturyan, Vardan, Tsereteli, David, Khachidze, Nika, Pepoyan, Astghik, Zhgenti, Ekaterine, Tevzadze, Liana, Manvelyan, Anahit, Balayan, Marine, Imnadze, Paata, Torok, Tamas, Lemay, Danielle G, and Mills, David A
- Subjects
Feces ,Humans ,Bifidobacterium ,RNA ,Ribosomal ,16S ,Breast Feeding ,Infant ,Infant ,Newborn ,Armenia ,Georgia (Republic) ,Female ,Male ,Gastrointestinal Microbiome ,Infant Mortality ,Nutrition ,Preterm ,Low Birth Weight and Health of the Newborn ,Pediatric ,Prevention ,Perinatal Period - Conditions Originating in Perinatal Period ,Breast Cancer ,Genetics ,Cancer ,2.2 Factors relating to physical environment ,RNA ,Ribosomal ,16S ,Newborn ,Georgia ,Preterm ,Low Birth Weight and Health of the Newborn ,Biochemistry and Cell Biology ,Other Physical Sciences - Abstract
Multiple factors help shape the infant intestinal microbiota early in life. Environmental conditions such as the presence of bioactive molecules from breast milk dictate gut microbial growth and survival. Infants also receive distinct, personalized, bacterial exposures leading to differential colonization. Microbial exposures and gut environmental conditions differ between infants in different locations, as does the typical microbial community structure in an infant's gut. Here we evaluate potential influences on the infant gut microbiota through a longitudinal study on cohorts of breast-fed infants from the neighboring countries of Armenia and Georgia, an area of the world for which the infant microbiome has not been previously investigated. Marker gene sequencing of 16S ribosomal genes revealed that the gut microbial communities of infants from these countries were dominated by bifidobacteria, were different from each other, and were marginally influenced by their mother's secretor status. Species-level differences in the bifidobacterial communities of each country and birth method were also observed. These community differences suggest that environmental variation between individuals in different locations may influence the gut microbiota of infants.
- Published
- 2017