ABSTRACT
The complex symbiotic relationship between the mammalian body and gut microbiome plays a critical role in the health outcomes of offspring later in life. The gut microbiome modulates virtually all physiological functions through direct or indirect interactions to maintain physiological homeostasis. Previous studies indicate a link between maternal/early-life gut microbiome, brain development, and behavioral outcomes relating to social cognition. Here we present direct evidence of the role of the gut microbiome in brain development. Through magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), we investigated the impact of the gut microbiome on brain organization and structure using germ-free (GF) mice and conventionalized mice, with the gut microbiome reintroduced after weaning. We found broad changes in brain volume in GF mice that persist despite the reintroduction of gut microbes at weaning. These data suggest a direct link between the maternal gut or early-postnatal microbe and their impact on brain developmental programming.
Disclosure statement
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Authors’ contributions
Conceptualisation, X.Y.Y., S.P., and S.J.; data acquisition and analysis, J.G., X.Y.Y., and H.U.L., B.H.; writing – original draft preparation. X.Y.Y., W.R.C., and S.J.; writing – review and editing, X.Y.Y., S.P., J.G., W.H., and S.J.; supervision, S.J.; funding acquisition S.P., W.H., and S.J.; critical revision of manuscript, S.J., S.P., W.H., and J.G. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Availability of data and materials
The raw datasets generated for this study are available in http://doi:10.18112/openneuro.ds004254.v1.0.0. The programming code used for data preprocessing and analysis can be found at https://gitlab.socsci.ru.nl/preclinical-neuroimaging/germfree. Further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding authors.
Ethics approval
All animal procedures were carried out per institutional guidelines by Nanyang Technological University and approved by Regional Animal Research Ethical Board, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, Singapore.
Supplementary material
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/19490976.2023.2283911