The role of the gut microbiota in age-specific LPS-induced immune responses

Puberty is a critical period of development that is marked by the maturation of the stress and immune systems. There are marked age and sex differences in peripheral and central inflammatory responses to an immune challenge between pubertal and adult mice. Given the strong link between the gut microbiome and immune system, it is possible that the age and sex differences in immune responses are mediated by age and sex differences in gut microbial composition. The current study investigated whether cohousing adult and pubertal CD1 mice for three weeks of pair-housing, could mitigate age-dependent immune responses and whether these changes would be correlated with changes in the gut microbiome.