Impact of bovine colostrum as a fortifier on the gut microbiota in very preterm infants

Very preterm infants (VPIs) are born immature and are susceptible to gut microbiota dysbiosis which is related to intestinal complications such as necrotizing enterocolitis. Fortification of human milk is often necessary for VPIs to meet their nutrient requirements for catch-up growth. However, the optimal fortifier product remains uncertain. Bovine colostrum (BC), rich in milk bioactive factors, is considered an alternative to the highly-processed conventional fortifiers (CF). A recent trial, FortiColos (NCT03537365), investigated the use of bovine colostrum as a fortifier added to human milk for VPIs compared to a conventional fortifier, showing comparable effects on growth. Here we presented a follow-up study of the FortiColos trial investigating the impacts of these two different fortifiers on the gut microbiota. We profiled the fecal microbiota by 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon sequencing.