Infant Rhesus Monkey Fecal Microbiome II

In this study, we used the rhesus monkey as a model to evaluate the physiological response and metabolic consequences of providing a formula with protein content that is slightly lower than the level present in rhesus monkey milk. We further tested whether reducing the protein level and incorporating free amino acids in the formula would decelerate weight gain, provide better support for self-regulation of energy intake, and result in a more similar physiological and metabolic response when compared to a BF reference group. We hypothesized that as the amount of protein and free amino acids in infant formula were modified to become more similar to the mother’s milk, phenotypic improvement and a difference in fecal microbial profile would be observed.