In utero human intestine contains maternally derived bacterial metabolites
We suggest that the microbiome-associated metabolites are maternally derived and vertically transmitted to the fetus. Notably, these bacterially derived metabolites, particularly short-chain fatty acids and secondary bile acids, are likely biologically active and functional in regulating the fetal immune system and preparing the gastrointestinal tract for postnatal microbial encounters, as the transcripts for their various receptors and carrier proteins are present in second trimester intestinal tissue through single-cell transcriptomic data. Video Abstract.
Authors
- Omry Koren (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7738-1337)
- George C. Tseng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5447-1014)
- Weihong Gu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0111-9949)
- Ron Schweitzer
- Liza Konnikova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4804-5497)
- Soliman Khatib (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6762-2408)
- Wenjia Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5502-462X)
Institutions
- Bar-Ilan University (IL)
- University of Pittsburgh (US)
- Yale University (US)
- Migal - Galilee Technology Center (IL)
- Tel Hai Academic College (IL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Microbiome
- Published
- 2025-05-06
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s40168-025-02110-0
- Citations
- 7
- Primary Topic
- Gut microbiota and health
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.64
Funders
- Yale University
- University of Pittsburgh
- National Institutes of Health