Location: Microbiome and Metabolism Research
Project Number: 6026-10700-001-031-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jul 1, 2026
End Date: Dec 31, 2028
Objective:
Elucidate the role of gut microbiota and milk bioactives on gut, immune system and brain function. We hypothesize that human milk bioactive components (i.e., HMOs, IgA) will modulate offspring microbiota and neurodevelopment.
Approach:
1. The effect of milk IgA alone, HMOs or the combination with microbiota from breast or formula fed infants will be investigated. 3-month-old infant stool samples from our Happy Tummies study will be used as breastfed infant microbiota (BFM) and milk formula fed infant microbiota (FFM). Germ-free mouse model will be used to determine the gut-brain communication and behavioral outcomes.
2. Also we will determine whether microbiota from breastfed versus formula fed milk fed in the presence of milk bioactive components early in life will protect from later life exposure to a western diet. After 14 days of bioactive supplementation a set of C57Bl/6 germ free mice will be exposed to high fat diet for 16 weeks and gut and brain outcomes will be measured.
3. To determine the likely mechanisms in gut-brain communication, microbial extracellular vesicles (MEVs)will be isolated from infants fed human milk or formula. In vitro cell culture model will be leveraged to study the function of the MEVs from human milk and formula fed infants.