MPRINT: mother-infant dyads and antibiotic exposure

Newborns and infants are commonly exposed to antibiotics. Evidence is mounting that disruption of the developing microbiome through antibiotic exposure leads to long term adverse immunological, neurological and metabolic outcomes. While direct antibiotic exposure has been shown to alter the microbiome and metabolome, much less is known about indirect antibiotic exposure such as through breast milk. In this project, we aim to address the impact of antibiotic exposure through breast milk on the infant microbiome and metabolome; and to determine if we can monitor antibiotic exposure through noninvasive skin swabs. Longitudinal fecal, breast milk, and skin swabs have been collected from 120 mother/infant dyads. Untargeted metabolomics analysis will be conducted to analyze changes in metabolites; shotgun metagenomics analysis will be used to analyze changes in maternal and infant microbial communities.