Cited by 101Gut microbiota and healthAntibiotic Resistance in BacteriaInfant Nutrition and Health

Early-life gut microbiome modulation reduces the abundance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

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Casaburi, Giorgio, Duar, Rebbeca M., Vance, Daniel P., Mitchell, Ryan, Contreras, Lindsey, Frese, Steven A., Smilowitz, Jennifer T., Underwood, Mark A.·2019·Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control

Abstract

Antibiotic-resistant (AR) bacteria are a global threat. AR bacteria can be acquired in early life and have long-term sequelae. Limiting the spread of antibiotic resistance without triggering the development of additional resistance mechanisms is of immense clinical value. Here, we show how the infant gut microbiome can be modified, resulting in a significant reduction of AR genes (ARGs) and the potentially pathogenic bacteria that harbor them. The gut microbiome was characterized using shotgun metagenomics of fecal samples from two groups of healthy, term breastfed infants. One group was fed B. infantis EVC001 in addition to receiving lactation support (n = 29, EVC001-fed), while the other received lactation support alone (n = 31, controls). Coliforms were isolated from fecal samples and genome sequenced, as well as tested for minimal inhibitory concentrations against clinically relevant antibiotics. Infants fed B. infantis EVC001 exhibited a change to the gut microbiome, resulting in a 90% lower level of ARGs compared to controls. ARGs that differed significantly between groups were predicted to confer resistance to beta lactams, fluoroquinolones, or multiple drug classes, the majority of which belonged to Escherichia, Clostridium, and Staphylococcus. Minimal inhibitory concentration assays confirmed the resistance phenotypes among isolates with these genes. Notably, we found extended-spectrum beta lactamases among healthy, vaginally delivered breastfed infants who had never been exposed to antibiotics. Colonization of the gut of breastfed infants by a single strain of B. longum subsp. infantis had a profound impact on the fecal metagenome, including a reduction in ARGs. This highlights the importance of developing novel approaches to limit the spread of these genes among clinically relevant bacteria. Future studies are needed to determine whether colonization with B. infantis EVC001 decreases the incidence of AR infections in breastfed infants. This clinical trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov , NCT02457338.

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  • Bifidobacterium supplementation has been associated with lower ARG abundance in the infant gut microbiome, likely due to the competitive exclusion of ARG-rich pathobionts.

    “Bifidobacterium, and Bifidobacterium supplementation has been associated with lower ARG abundance in the infant gut microbiome, likely due to the competitive exclusion of ARG-rich pathobionts56–59.”

    From Impact of early life antibiotic and probiotic treatment on gut microbiome and resistome of very-low-birth-weight preterm infants. (2025) · cites this paper as [56]

    The Results report that breastfed infants fed B. infantis EVC001 had 90% fewer ARGs than controls, and significantly lower levels of ARG-associated Enterobacteriaceae. The Discussion also reports reductions in Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. These findings support the association with fewer ARG-rich bacteria, but the paper does not establish competitive exclusion as the mechanism. (LLM, conf=0.82)

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Authors
Casaburi, G., Duar, R. M., Vance, D. P., Mitchell, R., Contreras, L., Frese, S. A., Smilowitz, J. T., & Underwood, M. A.
Affiliations
  • Infinant Health Inc. (United States) (US)
  • University of Nebraska–Lincoln (US)
  • University of California, Davis (US)
  • University of California Davis Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
  • Smilowitz, Jennifer T.
  • Underwood, Mark A.
Venue
Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control
Published
2019-08-14
Volume
8
Issue
1
Pages
131-131
ISSN
2047-2994 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2967608930
Cited by
101
References
86
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 12
FWCI
4.39
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
Evolve Biosystems (n/a)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Gut microbiota and health
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Medicine › Antibiotic Resistance in Bacteria
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Infant Nutrition and Health
Keywords
antibiotic resistance genes, infant gut microbiota, probiotic supplementation, breastfeeding, coliform bacteria, extended-spectrum beta-lactamase, minimum inhibitory concentration, Escherichia, Clostridium, Staphylococcus, vaginal delivery, antibiotic resistance spread
MeSH terms
Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Bifidobacterium longum subspecies infantis, Whole Genome Sequencing, Anti-Bacterial Agents, Bacteria, beta-Lactamases, Breast Feeding, Drug Resistance, Microbial, Feces, Humans, Infant, Newborn, Microbial Sensitivity Tests, Case-Control Studies, Probiotics, Metagenomics, High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing

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