| Description |
In the morning session (Part I) for the Sweeney Neonatology Lectureship, I will focus on the analysis, causes, and outcomes of gut microbiome dysbiosis in preterm infants born at very low birth weight (VLBW). These infants develop intestinal microbial dysbiosis, characterized by low diversity, reduced commensal microorganisms, and enrichment of opportunistic pathogens of the Gammaproteobacteria class. The origin of this dysbiosis is due to a combination of immaturity and interventions. I propose that these factors interact to produce inflammation in the infant gut, which further perpetuates dysbiosis. Understanding the sources of dysbiosis could result in interventions to reduce gut inflammation, decrease enteric pathology, and improve health outcomes for these vulnerable infants. I will present data from a 5-year NIH funded research study on 83 VLBW preterm infants. I will describe the nature of the dysbiosis measured and provide new data about these infants as they grew to toddlerhood (age 2) and early childhood (age 4). We found a relationship between dysbiosis in the NICU gut microbiome and growth faltering in the NICU and again at 4 years of age. We also found relationships between impaired neurodevelopment and disturbed behavior at 2 and 4 years and the NICU gut microbiome.
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