Publications by authors named "Rebbeca M Duar"

Background: The loss of ancestral microbes, or the "disappearing microbiota hypothesis" has been proposed to play a critical role in the rise of inflammatory and immune diseases in developed nations. The effect of this loss is most consequential during early-life, as initial colonizers of the newborn gut contribute significantly to the development of the immune system.

Methods: In this longitudinal study (day 3, week 3, and month 3 post-birth) of infants of Asian ancestry born in Singapore, we studied how generational immigration status and common perinatal factors affect bifidobacteria and subsp.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Conjugated -glycans are considered next-generation bioactive prebiotic compounds due to their selective stimulation of beneficial microbes. These compounds are glycosidically attached to proteins through -acetylglucosamines specific asparagine residue (AsN-X-Ser/Thr). Certain bacteria such as () have been shown to be capable of utilizing conjugated -glycans, owing to their specialized genomic abilities.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Disrupted development of the gut microbiota is a contributing cause of childhood malnutrition. subspecies is a prominent early colonizer of the infant gut that consumes human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs). We found that the absolute abundance of is lower in 3- to 24-month-old Bangladeshi infants with severe acute malnutrition (SAM) compared to their healthy age-matched counterparts.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Not all infants carry specialized gut microbes, meaning they cannot digest human milk oligosaccharides and therefore do not receive complete benefits from human milk. EVC001 is equipped to convert the full array of complex oligosaccharides into compounds usable by the infant, making it an ideal candidate to stabilize gut function and improve nutrition in preterm infants. A prospective, open-label study design was used to evaluate the tolerability of EVC001 and its effects on the fecal microbiota in preterm infants in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Colostrum contains all essential nutrients for the neonate during the first days of life, with impacts that continue far beyond these first days. Bovine colostrum has been used for human consumption due to the high concentrations of bioactive proteins, vitamins, minerals, growth factors, as well as free and conjugated oligosaccharides. Processes involved in the preparation of bovine colostrum for human consumption play a pivotal role in preserving and maintaining the activity of the bioactive molecules.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Colostrum is a complex biological fluid produced by mammals immediately after parturition. It meets all the nutritional requirements for neonates as a good source of macro- and micronutrients, bioactive peptides, and growth factors. Bovine colostrum is also a potential source of nutrition and bioactive because of its rich protein content that includes immunoglobulin G (IgG) and lactoferrin.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The gut microbiome plays an important role in early life, protecting newborns from enteric pathogens, promoting immune system development and providing key functions to the infant host. Currently, there are limited data to broadly assess the status of the US healthy infant gut microbiome. To address this gap, we performed a multi-state metagenomic survey and found high levels of bacteria associated with enteric inflammation (e.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Dysbiosis is associated with acute and long-term consequences for neonates. Probiotics can be effective in limiting the growth of bacteria associated with dysbiosis and promoting the healthy development of the infant microbiome. Given its adaptation to the infant gut, and promising data from animal and models, subsp.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Mounting evidence supports a connection between the composition of the infant gut microbiome and long-term health. In fact, aberrant microbiome compositions during key developmental windows in early life are associated with increased disease risk; therefore, making pertinent modifications to the microbiome during infancy offers significant promise to improve human health. There is growing support for integrating the concept of ecosystem services (the provision of benefits from ecosystems to humans) in linking specific microbiome functions to human well-being.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cross-feeding based on the metabolite 1,2-propanediol has been proposed to have an important role in the establishment of trophic interactions among gut symbionts, but its ecological importance has not been empirically established. Here, we show that growth of (syn. ) ATCC PTA 6475 is enhanced through 1,2-propanediol produced by UCC2003 and MG1655 from the metabolization of fucose and rhamnose, respectively.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Over the past century, there has been a steady increase in the stool pH of infants from industrialized countries. Analysis of historical data revealed a strong association between abundance of in the gut microbiome of breasted infants and stool pH, suggesting that this taxon plays a key role in determining the pH in the gut. subsp.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

There is a burgeoning literature highlighting differences in health outcomes between babies born vaginally and by caesarean section (c-section) This has led to the suggestion that infants born by c-section may benefit from vaginal swabbing/seeding. Here, we discuss from an ecological perspective that it is gut-adapted, not vagina-adapted microbes that are likely to take up residence in the gut and have the most beneficial impact on the developing neonate. Further, we caution the practice of 'vaginal seeding' may be potentially unsafe and also give parents and health professionals a false sense of action in restoring the infant gut microbiome following c-section.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Antibiotic-resistant (AR) bacteria are a global threat. AR bacteria can be acquired in early life and have long-term sequelae. Limiting the spread of antibiotic resistance without triggering the development of additional resistance mechanisms is of immense clinical value.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

There is a clear association between the gastrointestinal (GI) microbiome and the development of chronic noncommunicable diseases, providing a rationale for the development of strategies that target the GI microbiota to improve human health. In this article, we discuss the potential of supplementing the human diet with nondigestible fermentable carbohydrates (NDFCs) to modulate the composition, structure, diversity, and metabolic potential of the GI microbiome in an attempt to prevent or treat human disease. The current concepts by which NDFCs can be administered to humans, including prebiotics, fermentable dietary fibers, and microbiota-accessible carbohydrates, as well as the mechanisms by which these carbohydrates exert their health benefits, are discussed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Lactobacillus species are found in nutrient-rich habitats associated with food, feed, plants, animals and humans. Due to their economic importance, the metabolism, genetics and phylogeny of lactobacilli have been extensively studied. However, past research primarily examined lactobacilli in experimental settings abstracted from any natural history, and the ecological context in which these bacteria exist and evolve has received less attention.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The species has diversified into host-specific lineages, implying a long-term association with different vertebrates. Strains from rodent lineages show specific adaptations to mice, but the processes underlying the evolution of in other hosts remain unknown. We administered three standardized inocula composed of strains from different host-confined lineages to mice, pigs, chickens, and humans.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF