Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute
Study shows that preterm infants may be more vulnarable to microbal exposure
In a new study, Group Sverremark-Ekström shows that extremely preterm infants have monocyte characteristics and functional features that deviate from infants born full-term. Some of these differences persist until they reach an age corresponding to full-term, potentially making them more vulnerable to microbial exposures during the first months of life.
In this publication weinvestigated functional characteristics of the peripheral monocyte compartment in longitudinal samples from extremely preterm children. These data were further correlated with gut microbiota characteristics, probiotic supplementation as well as complications such as chorioamnionitis and sepsis. We demonstrate that the extremely preterm infants has persistent alterations in their monocyte characteristics that are further aggravated in chorioamnionitis cases. In addition, sepsis during the first weeks of life strongly skewed the circulating immune profile, also weeks after recovery. Further, we report a correlation between gut microbiota features and monocyte phenotype and responses, but also that probiotic supplementation associate with distinct monocyte characteristics, that are linked to a tolerogenic profile.
