Maternal Inheritance of Bifidobacterial Communities and Bifidophages in Infants Through Vertical Transmission

Overview

Journal Microbiome

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialties Genetics
Microbiology

Date 2017 Jun 28

PMID 28651630

Citations 157

Authors

Sabrina Duranti

Gabriele Andrea Lugli

Leonardo Mancabelli

Federica Armanini

Francesca Turroni

Kieran James

Pamela Ferretti

Valentina Gorfer

Chiara Ferrario

Christian Milani

Marta Mangifesta

Rosaria Anzalone

Moreno Zolfo

Alice Viappiani

Edoardo Pasolli

Ilaria Bariletti

Rosarita Canto

Rosanna Clementi

Marina Cologna

Tiziana Crifo

Giuseppina Cusumano

Sabina Fedi

Stefania Gottardi

Claudia Innamorati

Caterina Mase

Daniela Postai

Daniela Savoi

Massimo Soffiati

Saverio Tateo

Anna Pedrotti

Nicola Segata

Douwe Van Sinderen

Marco Ventura

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: The correct establishment of the human gut microbiota represents a crucial development that commences at birth. Different hypotheses propose that the infant gut microbiota is derived from, among other sources, the mother's fecal/vaginal microbiota and human milk.

Results: The composition of bifidobacterial communities of 25 mother-infant pairs was investigated based on an internal transcribed spacer (ITS) approach, combined with cultivation-mediated and genomic analyses. We identified bifidobacterial strains/communities that are shared between mothers and their corresponding newborns. Notably, genomic analyses together with growth profiling assays revealed that bifidobacterial strains that had been isolated from human milk are genetically adapted to utilize human milk glycans. In addition, we identified particular bacteriophages specific of bifidobacterial species that are common in the viromes of mother and corresponding child.

Conclusions: This study highlights the transmission of bifidobacterial communities from the mother to her child and implies human milk as a potential vehicle to facilitate this acquisition. Furthermore, these data represent the first example of maternal inheritance of bifidobacterial phages, also known as bifidophages in infants following a vertical transmission route.

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