Distinct gut microbiota in southeastern African and northern European infantsOriginal paper
Karen Pendergrass is a microbiome researcher specializing in microbiome-targeted interventions (MBTIs). She systematically analyzes scientific literature to identify microbial patterns, develop hypotheses, and validate interventions. As the founder of the Microbiome Signatures Database, she bridges microbiome research with clinical practice. In 2012, based on her own investigative research, she became the first documented case of FMT for Celiac Disease, four years before the first published case study.
Read MoreWhat was studied?
Researchers compared gut microbiota in 6-month-old infants from rural Malawi (n=44) and urban Finland (n=31). Both groups were breast-fed and eating an age-appropriate local diet.
How was it studied?
Stool samples from both cohorts were characterized using flow cytometry-fluorescent in situ hybridization and quantitative polymerase chain reaction methods.
What did they find?
Bifidobacteria dominated in all infants but were higher in Malawian infants (70.8%) than Finnish infants (46.8%, P<0.001). Bacteroides-Prevotella (17.2% vs 4.7%, P<0.001) and Clostridium histolyticum (4.4% vs 2.8%, P=0.01) also differed. Bifidobacterium adolescentis, Clostridium perfringens, and Staphylococcus aureus were detected only in Finnish infants.
Why it matters
Distinct microbiota profiles between low-income and high-income settings may relate to differences in dietary energy harvest, malnutrition, and diarrheal disease risk in low-income countries versus Western lifestyle disease risk in high-income countries.