Project description:This study is being conducted to learn more about family communication of genetic risk information. Semi-structured interviews lasting up to one hour will be conducted with three populations: parent/child pairs at risk for Huntington’s Disease, parent/child pairs at risk for hereditary cancer, and genetic counselors.
Project description:Diversity-generating retroelements (DGRs) accelerate evolution by rapidly diversifying variable proteins. The human gastrointestinal microbiota harbors the greatest density of DGRs known in nature, suggesting they play adaptive roles in this environment. We identified >1,100 unique DGRs among human-associated Bacteroides species and discovered a subset that diversify adhesive components of Type V pili and related proteins. We show that Bacteroides DGRs are horizontally transferred across species, that some are highly active while others are tightly controlled, and that they preferentially alter the functional characteristics of ligand-binding residues on adhesive organelles. Specific variable protein sequences are enriched when Bacteroides strains compete with other commensal bacteria in gnotobiotic mice. Analysis of >2,700 DGRs from diverse phyla in mother-infant pairs shows that Bacteroides DGRs are preferentially transferred to vaginally delivered infants where they actively diversify. Our observations provide a foundation for understanding the roles of stochastic, targeted genome plasticity in shaping host-associated microbial communities.
Project description:The objective of the present study was to identify the nutrient utilization and the SCFA production potential of gut microbes during the first year of life. The 16S sequencing data represents 100 mother-child pairs, longitudinally for the infants (0, 3mo, 6mo and 12mo) and mothers 18 weeks pregnancy. We wanted to identify the SCFA composition in pregnant woman and their infants through the first year of life, and their correlation to gut bacteria and other influencal factors. Metaproteomics on selected infants were analyzed to look for nutrient sources used by potential SCFA producers.
2021-09-09 | PXD017844 | Pride
Project description:16S rRNA sequences of human fecal microbiota of mother-child pairs from Southern Brazil
Project description:<p>This is a study of the oral and gut microbiome of 226 mother-child dyads enrolled in the INSIGHT (Intervention Nurses Start Infants Growing on Healthy Trajectories) study. INSIGHT is a randomized, controlled trial comparing a responsive parenting intervention designed for the primary prevention of childhood obesity against a control. </p> <p>The microbiome portion of the study was designed to investigate the relationship between a cross-sectional view of the child's microbiome (at two years of age) and the patterns of growth between birth and 2 years. These first-born children were deeply studied in this time period with data collected on a wide variety of variables including mode of delivery, sex, weight and height (collected at 7 time points), medication usage, diet information, and maternal health information (gestational weight gain, gestational diabetes, smoking during pregnancy). Microbiome samples from the child (buccal swab and stool sample) and their mother (buccal swab) were collected at the child's 2-year clinical research visit. </p>
Project description:This study presents a validated, open-source QIIME2- and R-based pipeline for 16S rRNA gene profiling using multi-amplicon sequencing. It aims to overcome the limitations of commercial, closed-source tools by offering a standardized and reproducible workflow. The pipeline was benchmarked against proprietary software using five mock communities and 12 child–caregiver fecal sample pairs, showing nearly identical microbial profiles, greater sequencing depth, and improved taxonomic resolution. High reproducibility (R = 0.99, p < 0.0001) was achieved across all datasets. Application to pediatric cancer samples revealed distinct Bifidobacterium variants in children whose microbiota closely matched their caregivers’. This highlights the pipeline’s utility in studying microbial relationships. Overall, the pipeline supports transparent, adaptable, and accurate microbiome analysis, advancing research in both clinical and experimental settings while promoting open-source solutions for reproducible science.
Project description:<p>Early-life exposure to natural and synthetic chemicals can impact acute and chronic health conditions. Here, a suspect screening workflow anchored on high-resolution mass spectrometry was applied to elucidate xenobiotics in breast milk and matching stool samples collected from Nigerian mother-infant pairs (n = 11) at three time points. Potential correlations between xenobiotic exposure and the developing gut microbiome, as determined by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, were subsequently explored. Overall, 12,192 and 16,461 features were acquired in the breast milk and stool samples, respectively. Following quality control and suspect screening, 562 and 864 features remained, respectively, with 149 of these features present in both matrices. Taking advantage of 242 authentic reference standards measured for confirmatory purposes of food bio-actives and toxicants, 34 features in breast milk and 68 features in stool were identified and semi-quantified. Moreover, 51 and 78 features were annotated with spectral library matching, as well as 416 and 652 by in silico fragmentation tools in breast milk and stool, respectively. The analytical workflow proved its versatility to simultaneously determine a diverse panel of chemical classes including mycotoxins, endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), antibiotics, plasticizers, perfluorinated alkylated substances (PFAS), and pesticides, although it was originally optimized for polyphenols. Spearman rank correlation of the identified features revealed significant correlations between chemicals of the same classification such as polyphenols. One-way ANOVA and differential abundance analysis of the data obtained from stool samples revealed that molecules of plant-based origin elevated as complementary foods were introduced to the infants’ diets. Annotated compounds in the stool, such as tricetin, positively correlated with the genus Blautia. Moreover, vulgaxanthin negatively correlated with <em>Escherichia-Shigella</em>. Despite the limited sample size, this exploratory study provides high-quality exposure data of matched biospecimens obtained from mother-infant pairs in sub-Saharan Africa and shows potential correlations between the chemical exposome and the gut microbiome.</p>