Association between Gut Microbiota and Infant's Temperament in the First Year of Life in a Chinese Birth Cohort

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Ying Wang, Wuhan University; Xiaoli Chen, Wuhan University; Yun Yu, Wuhan University; Yangun Liu, Wuhan University; Qing Zhang, Wuhan University; Jinbing Bai, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2020-05-01
• Publisher: MDPI
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8050753
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Microorganisms
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 5
• Grant/Funding Information: The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.81903334).
• Keywords: Bifidobacterium-longum R0175; Childhood; Chinese birth cohort; gut microbiota; Maternal education; Cross-cultural differences; microbiota-gut-brain axis; States of America; Science & Technology; Microbiology; Brain axis; infant; Toddlerhood; Lactobacillus-helveticus R0052; Stability; Behavior; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; temperament
• Research Categories: Biology, Microbiology; Health Sciences, Nursing; Health Sciences, Public Health; Health Sciences, Human Development

Abstract

Infant temperament characteristics play a critical role in children’s developmental pathways and can predict adulthood psychopathology. The diversity and composition of the gut microbiota are associated with human temperament in both adults and young children. However, the relationship between the gut microbiota and temperament in 12-month-old infants is rarely studied; this developmental period is when temperament reaches a relatively stable stage. We used high-throughput sequencing methods to explore whether temperament characteristics were associated with gut microbiota diversity and composition. Infants’ fecal samples were collected at 12 months of age for the gut microbiota analysis. Based on the primary caregivers’ reports, infants’ temperaments were measured using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-revised (IBQ-R). This study included 51 infants, including 20 boys and 31 girls, with a mean age of 12.25 months. Results showed that soothability was positively correlated with maternal education level (β = 0.29, p = 0.043, adjust p = 0.025) and the abundance of Bifidobacterium genera (β = 0.62, p = 0.004, adjust p = 0.002). Conversely, cuddliness was negatively correlated with the abundance of Hungatella genera. There was no significant difference in temperament based on gender. This study demonstrated that gut microbiota composition was associated with temperament in 12-month-old infants. These results point to the importance of gut microbiota balance. Future studies on the mechanisms behind the gut microbiota affecting temperament are warranted.