About this Research Topic

Background

The human intestinal microbiota plays a vital role in human health and nutrition by producing nutrients, preventing colonization of the gut by potentially pathogenic microorganisms, and preserving the host’s health through interactions with the developing immune system.

In early life, the gut microbiota dramatically changes through interactions with various environmental factors and the development of immune system, which is a potential determinant of life-long health. Although bacterial colonization could occur prenatally, the first few weeks after birth correspond to critical stages of gut microbiota colonization. The early-life gut microbiota has a long-lasting effect on the development of gut microbiota throughout life. The dysbiosis and early events in colonization of the human gut microbiota are implicated in changes in the gut microbial trajectory, which may result in long-term consequences, including an increased risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, obesity, autism, atopic dermatitis, and asthma, later in life.

The microbiota in early life has been linked to allergy risk and infection. The diversity and dysregulation of intestinal microbiota have also been related to the pathology of epilepsy, and gut microbiota plays an essential role in epilepsy, while regulating intestinal microbiota through exogenous intervention can alleviate symptoms. Recent studies have also indicated that preterm infants have been shown to possess differential profiles of gut microbiota and that the succession of gut microbiota of preterm infants is disordered due to systemic physiological immaturity, which confers negative influences on the growth, development, and health of infants. Infants born preterm are also at high risk for developing bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), a chronic lung disease of prematurity. At earlier gestational ages, complications such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and late-onset sepsis (LOS) conditions are also significantly more common and are possible due to a shift in gut microbiota composition.

This Research Topic welcomes Original Research, Reviews, Mini-reviews, and Perspective articles related to, but not limited to, the following sub-topics:

- The diversity and dysregulation of infants’ intestinal microbiota on the pathology of chronic or immune-related diseases such as diabetes, obesity, asthma, autism, atopic dermatitis, epilepsy, allergy, etc.
- The role of the intestinal microbiota and dysbacteriosis in preterm infants in the pathogenesis of chronic diseases such as BPD, NEC, and LOS.
- The identification of biomarkers, such as metabolites and commensal bacteria, for the early prediction or/and diagnosis of chronic diseases in infants, such as NEC, or later in life
- The influence of maternal diet and breast milk on infant intestinal flora, leading to changes in infants’ growth, development, and immune development.
- Metagenomic insights into infant gut microbiome and functions across multiple delivery modes and feeding types.
- The effects of gut microbiota from mothers with neonatal oral microbiota on colonizing the neonatal oral cavity at birth.

Keywords: dysbiosis, metabolites, preterm infant, infant gut microbiota, chronic/immune-related disease

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