New insights into how the infant microbiome impacts early childhood
behavior in boys and girls

Date:
November 4, 2021
Source:
The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Summary:
A new study has found a direct and sex-specific association
between the composition of infant microbiome and early childhood
behavioral health.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
A new Dartmouth-led study published in Pediatric Research has found a
direct and sex-specific association between the composition of infant microbiome and early childhood behavioral health.


========================================================================== Previous studies have established a link between the gut microbiome --
the overall communities of microbes that colonize the intestinal tract
and play an important role in immune system development and health
outcomes -- and behaviors like depression, anxiety, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. But until now, there has been little to no human
data from which to characterize the role of the microbiome during infancy
in relation to these outcomes in children, and how they may differ in
boys and girls.

"A lot of the prior research has looked at participants who are already exhibiting depressive or anxious symptoms," explains Hannah Laue, ScD,
a research associate at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine and first
author on the study. "We wanted to look very early on, before these
behaviors were expressed, to see if we could establish if the microbiome
was influencing the neurobehavior or if it was the other way around."
Focusing in on infancy also allowed the investigators to study a critical window of time, says Laue, when the microbiome and the brain are going
through their most rapid periods of development, and when the brain may
be particularly susceptible to changes in the microbiome.

To determine whether differences in the infant microbiome were related
to neurobehavior, and whether that behavior varied in boys and girls --
the study team leveraged the New Hampshire Birth Cohort Study, which was established in 2009 to investigate the role of environmental factors on pregnancy and newborn outcomes. Through initiatives led by Dartmouth's
Drs. Juliette Madan and Margaret Karagas, the cohort involves longitudinal follow-up of the developing microbiome beginning at birth to understand
its influence on the health and well-being of children.

For the study, the researchers analyzed stool samples (collected by
the caregivers) from 260 infants at multiple timepoints -- six weeks,
one year, and two years. This allowed them to characterize the species
of microbes present in each participant's gut and their functions. They
then used the Behavioral Assessment System for Children, an instrument
that measures a wide range of clinical and adaptive behaviors in children
and young adults, to assess their behavioral development.

The study team was able to establish that microbiome changes occur before behavioral changes. They also found that infant and early-childhood
microbiomes were related to neurobehaviors such as anxiety, depression, hyperactivity, and social behaviors in a time- and sex-specific manner.

"For example, we found that increased diversity in the gut was better
for boys, meaning it was associated with fewer behaviors like anxiety
and depression, but not among girls," says Laue. "We saw differences in
social behaviors with microbiomes measured at later stages, where there
was evidence that diversity, again, could be beneficial for boys but
not for girls. And we found there were differences in certain species of bacteria and the essential functions they perform -- such as the synthesis
of vitamin B -- that were related to these outcomes, as well." While
their findings don't identify a microbial species that can immediately
be used to help prevent children from developing neurobehaviors such as
anxiety or depression, "We think the results do inform future studies
that can look a little more deeply at some of our specific findings and
clarify whether they could be developed as probiotics or other types of interventions such as the promotion of breastfeeding," says Laue.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
The_Geisel_School_of_Medicine_at_Dartmouth. Original written by Timothy
Dean. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Hannah E. Laue, Margaret R. Karagas, Modupe O. Coker, David
C. Bellinger,
Emily R. Baker, Susan A. Korrick, Juliette C. Madan. Sex-specific
relationships of the infant microbiome and early-childhood
behavioral outcomes. Pediatric Research, 2021; DOI:
10.1038/s41390-021-01785-z ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211104140826.htm

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