University of Bristol

Academic Institute

Claire WoodallProfessor Alastair Hay

B3704

Often termed the ‘lost organ’ the human gut contains trillions of microbes. A rich, diverse gut microbiota is considered to promote health, whereas a microbiota with reduced diversity is associated with gut inflammation and disease. Many factors affect gut microbes including host genetics, injury, diet, infection and antibiotics; the use of the latter being associated with the increased risk of obesity, cancer, asthma and diabetes in children.

The likely impact for this community-based prospective cohort study is the link between the identified microbiome patterns and subsequent infection susceptibility. There are published studies that describe the association between targeted factors and disruptions to the early-life gut microbiome. However, there are no published studies describing associated factors that influence the ‘critical window’ of early-life microbiome development which then increase future susceptibility to later-life infections and emerging health issues. The identification of specific early-life microbiome patterns with the permanent loss of beneficial bacteria that children take forward with them through-out life will have a huge effect on their life. This study will reveal ground-breaking developments to identify children most vulnerable to susceptibility to later-life infections. A combination of being able to perform both a cross-section and longitudinal microbiome study is very rare and will greatly enhance our understanding of topical trends in clinical microbiome. In particular, the prediction of clinical outcomes through microbial biomarkers represents an active and promising area of research.

25/01/2021