Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2021 Nov-Dec;70(6):462-468.
doi: 10.1097/NNR.0000000000000548.

Multi-Omics Analysis on Neurodevelopment in Preterm Neonates: A Protocol Paper

Sharon G Casavant, Jie Chen, Wanli Xu, Shabnam Lainwala, Adam Matson, Ming-Hui Chen, Angela Starkweather, Kendra Maas, Xiaomei S Cong
Comparative Study

Multi-Omics Analysis on Neurodevelopment in Preterm Neonates: A Protocol Paper

Sharon G Casavant et al. Nurs Res. 2021 Nov-Dec.

Abstract

Background: The gut microbiome is an important determinant of health and disease in preterm infants.

Objectives: The objective of this article was to share our current protocol for other neonatal intensive care units to potentially expand their existing protocols, aiming to characterize the relationship between the intestinal microbiome and health outcomes in preterm infants.

Methods: This prospective, longitudinal study planned to recruit 160 preterm infants born <32 weeks gestational age or weighing <1,500 g and admitted to one of two Level III/IV neonatal intensive care units. During the neonatal intensive care unit period, the primary measures included events of early life pain/stress, gut microbiome, host genetic variations, and neurobehavioral assessment. During follow-up visits, gut microbiome; pain sensitivity; and medical, growth, and developmental outcomes at 4, 8-12, and 18-24 months corrected age were measured.

Discussion: As of February 14, 2020, 214 preterm infants have been recruited. We hypothesize that infants who experience greater levels of pain/stress will have altered gut microbiome, including potential adverse outcomes such as necrotizing enterocolitis and host genetic variations, feeding intolerance, and/or neurodevelopmental impairments. These will differ from the intestinal microbiome of preterm infants who do not develop these adverse outcomes. To test this hypothesis, we will determine how alterations in the intestinal microbiome affect the risk of developing necrotizing enterocolitis, feeding intolerance, and neurodevelopmental impairments in preterm infants. In addition, we will examine the interaction between the intestinal microbiome and host genetics in the regulation of intestinal health and neurodevelopmental outcomes.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Theoretical Framework and Study Aims.
The framework incorporates the demographic, health status, and environmental factors that influence the interaction among early life experience and brain-gut-microbiota signaling. While host genotype-microbiota interactions are known to modulate the gut microbiome, the precise mechanisms leading to neurodevelopmental deficits will be thoroughly investigated in the study. Specific aims are to determine how alterations in the intestinal microbiome may impact infant health and neurodevelopmental outcomes and to examine the interaction between the intestinal microbiome and host genetics in the regulation of intestinal health and neurodevelopmental outcomes. NNNS=NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale; HRV = heart rate variability; ENS = enteric nervous system; CA = corrected age; NISS = Neonatal Infant Stressor Scale; NEC = Necrotizing Enterocolitis.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Data Collection Procedures. wk = week; m = month; CA = corrected age
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Auer PL, Reiner AP, Wang G, Kang HM, Abecasis GR, Altshuler D, Bamshad MJ, Nickerson DA, Tracy RP, Rich SS, NHLBI GO Exome Sequencing Project, & Leal SM (2016). Guidelines for large-scale sequence-based complex trait association studies: Lessons learned from the NHLBI exome sequencing project. American Journal of Human Genetics, 99, 791–801. 10.1016/j.ajhg.2016.08.012 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bayley N (2006) Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development - Third Edition. San Antonio, TX: Harcourt Assessment.
    1. Bayley N & Aylward GP (2019). Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development – Fourth Edition. Bloomington, MN: Pearson NCS, Inc.
    1. Blekhman R, Goodrich JK, Huang K, Sun Q, Bukowski R, Bell JT, Spector TD, Keinan A, Ley RE, Gevers D. and Clark AG. (2015). Host genetic variation impacts microbiome composition across human body sites. Genome Biology, 16, 191. 10.1186/s13059-015-0759-1 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bomar L, Maltz M, Colston S, & Graf J (2011). Directed culturing of microorganisms using metatranscriptomics. MBio, 2, e00012–11. 10.1128/mBio.00012-11 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types