Poster Pitches Australian Microbial Ecology 2022

Effect of a maternal dietary intervention during lactation on the infant gut microbiome (#42)

Azhar S Sindi 1 2 , Lisa F Stinson 3 , Soo Sum Lean 3 , Yit-Heng Chooi 3 , Gabriela E Leghi 4 , Merryn J Netting 5 6 7 , Mary E Wlodek 3 8 , Bev S Muhlhausler 4 9 , Donna T Geddes 3 , Matthew S Payne 1 10
  1. Division of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
  2. College of Applied Medical Sciences, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
  3. School of Molecular Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  4. School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
  5. Women and Kids Theme , South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), Adelaide, South , Australia
  6. Discipline of Paediatrics, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
  7. Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
  8. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  9. CSIRO, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
  10. , Women and Infants Research Foundation, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

Background

A growing body of literature has shown that maternal diet during pregnancy is associated with infant gut bacterial composition. However, whether maternal diet during lactation affects the exclusively breastfed infant gut microbiome remains understudied. This study sets out to determine whether a two-week of a reduced fat and sugar maternal dietary intervention during lactation is associated with changes in the infant gut microbiome composition and function.

Methods

Stool samples were collected from (n = 10) infants immediately before and after the intervention. Maternal baseline diet from healthy mothers was assessed using 24-h dietary recall, while maternal dietary intakes during the intervention were estimated using FoodWorks 10 Software. The two week dietary intervention comprised of pre-prepared meals delivered to the participants. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing was used to characterize the infant gut microbiome composition and function.

Results

Maternal fat and sugar intake during the intervention were significantly lower than at baseline. The functional capacity of the infant gut microbiome was significantly altered by the intervention, with increased levels of genes associated with 28 bacterial metabolic pathways involved in biosynthesis of vitamins (p = 0.003), amino acids (p = 0.005), carbohydrates (p = 0.01), and fatty acids and lipids (p = 0.01). Although the dietary intervention did not affect the bacterial composition of the infant gut microbiome, relative difference in maternal fiber intake was positively associated with increased abundance of genes involved in biosynthesis of storage compounds (p = 0.016), such as cyanophycin. Relative difference in maternal protein intake was negatively associated with Veillonella parvula (p = 0.006), while positively associated with Klebsiella michiganensis (p = 0.047). Relative difference in maternal sugar intake was positively associated with Lactobacillus paracasei (p = 0.022). Relative difference in maternal fat intake was positively associated with genes involved in the biosynthesis of storage compounds (p = 0.015), fatty acid and lipid (p = 0.039), and metabolic regulator (p = 0.038) metabolic pathways.

Conclusion

This pilot study demonstrates that a short-term maternal dietary intervention during lactation can significantly alter the functional potential, but not bacterial taxonomy, of the breastfed infant gut microbiome. More research is needed to replicate these results in a larger cohort and to determine their impact on the health and development of the breastfed infant.