Early-life microbiota as a baby metabolic guardian

Early-life microbiota have a crucial role in healthy development. Antibiotics, on the other hand, can disrupt this beneficial interaction and have been linked to increased adiposity in children. Shelton and collaborators went deeper into the mechanism by which microbiota protect against lipid metabolic dysfunction and diet-induced obesity. The results highlight the long-term metabolic risk of early antibiotic exposure. Early-life microbiota have a crucial role in healthy development. Antibiotics, on the other hand, can disrupt this beneficial interaction and have been linked to increased adiposity in children. Shelton and collaborators went deeper into the mechanism by which microbiota protect against lipid metabolic dysfunction and diet-induced obesity. The results highlight the long-term metabolic risk of early antibiotic exposure. An early-life microbiota metabolite protects against obesity by regulating intestinal lipid metabolismShelton et al.Cell Host & MicrobeOctober 3, 2023In BriefShelton et al. determine that early-life antibiotics exacerbate diet-induced obesity by disrupting interactions between the gut microbiota and the small intestine epithelium. Their study identifies that a Lactobacillus-derived metabolite, phenyllactic acid, regulates intestinal PPAR-γ to limit fat accumulation, revealing a mechanism by which the early-life microbiota protects against metabolic dysfunction. Full-Text PDF Open Access