These findings support the hypothesis that differences in HMO composition in mother's milk are associated with infant growth and body composition. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02535637.

DSLNT content in breast milk is a potential non-invasive marker to identify infants at risk of developing NEC, and screen high-risk donor milk. In addition, DSLNT could serve as a natural template to develop novel therapeutics against this devastating disorder.

Background: Early-life colonization of the intestinal tract is a dynamic process influenced by numerous factors. The impact of probioticsupplemented infant formula on the composition and function of the infant gut microbiota is not well defined. Objective: We sought to determine the effects of a bifidobacteriacontaining formula on the healthy human intestinal microbiome during the first year of life. Design: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of newborn infants assigned to a standard whey-based formula containing a total of 10 7 colony-forming units (CFU)/g of Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacterium longum, B. longum subspecies infantis (intervention), or to a control formula without bifidobacteria (placebo). Breastfed controls were included. Diversity and composition of fecal microbiota were determined by 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon sequencing, and metabolite profiles were analyzed by ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry over a period of 2 y. Results: Infants (n = 106) were randomly assigned to either the interventional (n = 48) or placebo (n = 49) group; 9 infants were exclusively breastfed throughout the entire intervention period of 12 mo. Infants exposed to bifidobacteria-supplemented formula showed decreased occurrence of Bacteroides and Blautia spp. associated with changes in lipids and unknown metabolites at month 1. Microbiota and metabolite profiles of intervention and placebo groups converged during the study period, and long-term colonization (24 mo) of the supplemented Bifidobacterium strains was not detected. Significant differences in microbiota and metabolites were detected between infants fed breast milk and those fed formula (P , 0.005) and between infants birthed vaginally and those birthed by cesarean delivery (P , 0.005). No significant differences were observed between infant feeding groups regarding growth, antibiotic uptake, or other health variables (P . 0.05). Conclusion:The supplementation of bifidobacteria to infant diet can modulate the occurrence of specific bacteria and metabolites during early life with no detectable long-term effects. This trial was registered at germanctr.de as DRKS00003660. Am J Clin Nutr 2017;106: 1274-86.

More than one million HIV-exposed, uninfected infants are born annually to HIV-positive mothers worldwide. This growing population of infants experiences twice the mortality of HIV-unexposed infants. We found that although there were very few differences seen in the microbiomes of mothers with and without HIV infection, maternal HIV infection was associated with changes in the microbiome of HIV-exposed, uninfected infants. Furthermore, we observed that human breast milk oligosaccharides were associated with the bacterial species in the infant microbiome. The disruption of the infant’s microbiome associated with maternal HIV infection may contribute to the increased morbidity and mortality of HIV-exposed, uninfected infants.