Maternal kefir intake during lactation impacts the breast milk and gut microbiota of the Wistar rat’s offspring
Environmental factors can play fundamental role in health in childhood and adulthood during critical developmental periods like lactation. The maternal intake of probiotics like kefir during lactation could benefit newborns' intestinal health. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of maternal kefir intake during lactation on bacterial breast milk composition and the gut microbiota of offspring Wistar male rats at weaning. Lactating Wistar rats and their pups were divided into four groups based on litter size and maternal kefir intake. Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene in breast milk revealed the predominance of the Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteriota phyla. Offspring gut microbiota exhibited clustering tendencies in kefir groups with varying genus abundance. Additionally, maternal kefir intake led to increased levels of butyrate acid in offspring faeces (> +30%, <i>p</i> > 0.05). These findings show that the lactation period could be a window of opportunity to program intestinal health through microbiota modulation.
Authors
- Aline Dias Paiva (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4234-8892)
- Gabriela de Cássia Ávila Alpino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3102-7882)
- Sheila Cristina Potente Dutra Luquetti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2257-5337)
- Beatriz Macedo de Oliveira Rocha
- Alessandra Barbosa Ferreira Machado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3972-7576)
- Vinícius Novaes Rocha
- Julliane Dutra Medeiros (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1049-9410)
- Vanessa Cordeiro Dias (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7681-3268)
- Yasmin Neves Vieira Sabino (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6489-374X)
- Poliana Guiomar de Almeida Brasiel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1048-7831)
- Cláudio Galuppo Diniz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6882-8312)
- Vânia Lúcia da Silva (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3682-9035)
- Thaı́s Costa de Almeida (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6337-2608)
Institutions
- Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (BR)
- Hospital Universitário - Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (BR)
- Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (BR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition
- Published
- 2025-02-03
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1080/09637486.2025.2461142
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Infant Nutrition and Health
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.12
Funders
- Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
- Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais