New review: how breastmilk shapes the infant microbiome and immune system

FIG 1. Associations between human milk components and physiological processes that influence infant immune development: epigenetics, microbiome, and gut integrity.

MILC member and THRiVE lab masters student, Spencer Ames, and colleagues published "Comparing early life nutritional sources and human milk feeding practices: personalized and dynamic nutrition supports infant gut microbiome development and immune system maturation" in Gut Microbes. This review article synthesizes evidence from human studies and model systems to discuss the impact of different nutritional sources on co-development of gut microbiome, antigen tolerance and immunity via mechanisms including epigenetics and the "weaning reaction". Follow the link to the full article [PDF] and check out Dr. Azad's [Tweetorial] on Twitter.