Gut Bacteria During Pregnancy Can Impact Child’s Stem Cells

A groundbreaking study published in Cell Stem Cell reveals that the composition of a mother’s gut microbiome during pregnancy can have long-lasting effects on her offspring’s stem cell growth and development. Researchers at the Institut Pasteur of Shanghai found that exposing pregnant mice to a common gut bacterium, Akkermansia muciniphila, resulted in offspring with more active stem cells in both the brain and intestinal tract. These beneficial impacts extended to the mice’s overall health and behavior, even at 10 months of age.

Long-Term Effects on Offspring

Offspring born to mothers treated with Akkermansia muciniphila exhibited several positive changes:

• Increased stem cell activity in the brain and intestines.
• Reduced anxiety and increased exploratory behavior.
• Faster recovery from colitis (intestinal inflammation) due to accelerated intestinal cell regeneration.

Prenatal Exposure is Key

Interestingly, the effects were only observed when the pregnant mice were exposed to the beneficial bacteria; exposing newborn mice to Akkermansia muciniphila did not produce the same positive outcomes. This suggests that the critical window for these effects is during pregnancy.

“The pregnancy period is a critical time for microbiome alterations,” explains senior author Parag Kundu. “These changes during this period can have lasting impacts on a child’s health.”

How Does It Work?

The researchers discovered that Akkermansia muciniphila alters the gut microbiome composition and boosts the production of metabolites like short-chain fatty acids and amino acids. These metabolites can cross the placenta and stimulate stem cell growth and proliferation through a protein called mTOR. When mTOR was inhibited, the beneficial effects on offspring stem cells were blocked.

Future Research and Implications

The team is now investigating the precise mechanisms by which these metabolites influence stem cells. They plan to build on these findings by conducting further research in humanized mice and analyzing human cohorts who consume probiotics during pregnancy. Their ultimate goal is to develop microbiome-based interventions to promote child health worldwide.

“Promoting child health is a major challenge globally, and it is crucial to apply these discoveries to humans,” states Kundu.