Mothers of Preterm Infants Have Individualized Breast Milk Microbiota that Changes Temporally Based on Maternal Characteristics

Michelle R Asbury; James Butcher; Julia K Copeland; Sharon Unger; Nicole Bando; Elena M Comelli; Victoria Forte; Alex Kiss; Lauren LeMay-Nedjelski; Philip M Sherman; Alain Stintzi; Christopher Tomlinson; Pauline W Wang; Deborah L O'Connor

doi:10.1016/j.chom.2020.08.001

Mothers of Preterm Infants Have Individualized Breast Milk Microbiota that Changes Temporally Based on Maternal Characteristics

Cell Host Microbe. 2020 Nov 11;28(5):669-682.e4. doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2020.08.001. Epub 2020 Sep 3.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Translational Medicine Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada.
² Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology and Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada.
³ Centre for the Analysis of Genome Evolution and Function, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3B2, Canada.
⁴ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Rogers Hixon Ontario Human Milk Bank and the Department of Pediatrics, Sinai Health, Toronto, ON M5G 1X5, Canada; Division of Neonatology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
⁵ Translational Medicine Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada.
⁶ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Joannah and Brian Lawson Centre for Child Nutrition, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada.
⁷ Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5T 3M6, Canada; Evaluative and Clinical Sciences, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada.
⁸ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Cell Biology Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada; Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
⁹ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Translational Medicine Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada; Division of Neonatology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
¹⁰ Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Translational Medicine Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada; Rogers Hixon Ontario Human Milk Bank and the Department of Pediatrics, Sinai Health, Toronto, ON M5G 1X5, Canada. Electronic address: deborah.oconnor@utoronto.ca.

PMID: 32888417
DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2020.08.001

Abstract

Mother's milk contains complex microbial communities thought to be important for colonizing a preterm infant's gastrointestinal tract. However, little is known about the microbiota in the preterm mother's milk and factors influencing its composition. We characterized the temporal dynamics of microbial communities in 490 breast milk samples from 86 mothers of preterm infants (born <1,250g) over the first 8 weeks postpartum. Highly individualized microbial communities were identified in each mother's milk that changed temporally with notable alterations in predicted microbial functions. However, pre-pregnancy BMI, delivery mode, and antibiotics were associated with changes in these microbial dynamics. Individual classes of antibiotics and their duration of exposure during prenatal and postpartum periods showed unique relationships with microbial taxa abundance and diversity in mother's milk. These results highlight the temporal complexity of the preterm mother's milk microbiota and its relationship with maternal characteristics as well as the importance of discussing antibiotic stewardship for mothers.

Keywords: BMI; C-section delivery; antibiotics; breast milk; lactation; microbiome; microbiota; preterm infant; vaginal delivery.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
Breast Feeding
Cesarean Section
Female
Gastrointestinal Microbiome / drug effects
Gastrointestinal Microbiome / physiology*
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Infant, Premature*
Milk, Human / microbiology*
Mothers*
Pregnancy

Substances

Anti-Bacterial Agents