Fetal microbiome and subsequent health in children

In this Biocenter Oulu Emerging Project, we test a novel hypothesis, that maternal microbes may influence fetal environment and subsequent health of children already before birth. Ph.D. student Jenni Turunen uses a cohort of 500 newborn infants born in Oulu University Hospital with samples from placenta, amniotic fluid, and the first-pass meconium, the first stool after birth formed already in utero.

First, we will investigate whether the observed diverse microbial composition in the samples represents whole bacterial cells or fragments of bacteria. Second, we will test whether the observed bacterial genetic material is influenced by maternal living environment, its biodiversity, and maternal antimicrobial consumption before birth. Third, using cord blood of the newborn infants, we will investigate the associations between the proposed fetal microbiome and immunological phenotypes.

The mechanisms of early colonization process before birth is investigated in collaboration with Ph.D. student Anna Kaisanlahti and Academy of Finland Researcher Justus Reunanen. The present cohort also serves as the validation cohort of the earlier results using a cohort of 212 children born in Jyväskylä Central hospital (Ph.D. student Katja Korpela, thesis estimated Jan 2021).