Table 1 Summary of salient biomarkers in meconium stool samples and their relationships to prematurity, antibiotics, and birth route in the Hannawayya R et al. study.
From: Microbes, metabolites, and inflammation: mapping the early neonatal intestinal landscape
Category of biomarker | Signatures | Impact | Relationship to prematurity | Effect of antibiotics | Effect of route of birth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Peptides | α-defensins | Heightened immune response | No effect | Increased in preterm infants with antibiotics | No effect |
Proteases | Serine proteases and matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) | Increased proteolysis and exacerbation of inflammation | Increased serine proteases and MMP in preterm infants | No effect | No effect |
Metabolome | Kynurenic acid, mevalonate, and short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) | Impaired anti-inflammatory properties | Decreased kynurenic acid, SCFA, and increased mevalonate in preterm infants | No effect | No effect |
Microbiome | Diversity | Dysbiosis | Decreased diversity and absent Bacteroidaceae in preterm infants | No effect | No effect |
