Nasopharyngeal Dysbiosis Precedes the Development of Lower Respiratory Tract Infections in Young Infants

We conducted an analysis of a longitudinal prospective cohort study of Zambian mother infant pairs who underwent NP sampling from 1 week through 14 weeks of age at 2 to 3 week intervals. Ten of the infants in the cohort developed LRTI and were matched with healthy comparators. We completed 16S rRNA gene sequencing on the 46 samples each of these infants contributed, as well as from baseline samples of the infants 47 mothers, and characterized the normal maturation of the healthy infant NP microbiome, 48 compared to infants who developed LRTI.