Linking gut microbiota rhythmicity to circadian maturation in infants
PSPE
- Mühlematter, Christophe University of Fribourg
- Nielsen, Dennis S. University of Copenhagen
- Castro-Mejía, Josue L. University of Copenhagen
- Walser, Jean-Claude ETH Zurich
- Schoch, Sarah F. University Childrens Hospital Zurich
- Kurth, Salome ORCID University of Fribourg
- 2025
Published in:
- Scientific Reports. - Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2025, vol. 15, no. 1, p. 1-16
Actimetry
Circadian development
Host-microbiome interaction
Sleep regulation
Pediatric research
Longitudinal
English
The human gut microbiota undergoes daily fluctuations, yet its interaction with sleep-wake patterns
during infancy remains largely uncharted. This study aims to elucidate the relationship between gut
microbiota rhythmicity and the development of sleep patterns in infants over the first year of life.
We continuously monitored 162 healthy infants across multiple days at 3, 6, and 12 months of age
using ankle actigraphy and 24-hour diaries. The Circadian Function Index (CFI) was computed as a
proxy for sleep-wake rhythm maturation. Stool samples were collected to profile gut microbiota
taxa composition via 16 S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, and microbial oscillations were assessed
through sine and cosine fitting to detect 24-hour patterns. Our findings revealed that the relative
abundance of bacterial taxa exhibited rhythmic patterns, with 26 zOTUs (1.74%) following a sine
pattern and 100 zOTUs (6.69%) displaying cosine rhythmicity. Cosine rhythmicity became more
pronounced with age, showing strong maturation: 7 zOTUs at 3 months, 2 zOTUs at 6 months, and
86 zOTUs at 12 months. Notably, 105 zOTUs (7.02%) were associated with CFI, demonstrating a
significant relationship between gut microbiota rhythms and sleep development. Among these, 27
zOTUs with sine dynamics and 96 zOTUs with cosine dynamics were linked to CFI, with this association
strengthening as infants aged. These results highlight the increasing synchronization between gut
microbiota rhythmicity and sleep-wake cycles during infancy, pointing to a critical window for potential
health interventions. This novel observation, previously reported in rodents and adults, underscores
the role of gut microbiota in early human development, offering new avenues for enhancing
developmental outcomes through targeted interventions.
during infancy remains largely uncharted. This study aims to elucidate the relationship between gut
microbiota rhythmicity and the development of sleep patterns in infants over the first year of life.
We continuously monitored 162 healthy infants across multiple days at 3, 6, and 12 months of age
using ankle actigraphy and 24-hour diaries. The Circadian Function Index (CFI) was computed as a
proxy for sleep-wake rhythm maturation. Stool samples were collected to profile gut microbiota
taxa composition via 16 S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, and microbial oscillations were assessed
through sine and cosine fitting to detect 24-hour patterns. Our findings revealed that the relative
abundance of bacterial taxa exhibited rhythmic patterns, with 26 zOTUs (1.74%) following a sine
pattern and 100 zOTUs (6.69%) displaying cosine rhythmicity. Cosine rhythmicity became more
pronounced with age, showing strong maturation: 7 zOTUs at 3 months, 2 zOTUs at 6 months, and
86 zOTUs at 12 months. Notably, 105 zOTUs (7.02%) were associated with CFI, demonstrating a
significant relationship between gut microbiota rhythms and sleep development. Among these, 27
zOTUs with sine dynamics and 96 zOTUs with cosine dynamics were linked to CFI, with this association
strengthening as infants aged. These results highlight the increasing synchronization between gut
microbiota rhythmicity and sleep-wake cycles during infancy, pointing to a critical window for potential
health interventions. This novel observation, previously reported in rodents and adults, underscores
the role of gut microbiota in early human development, offering new avenues for enhancing
developmental outcomes through targeted interventions.
- Faculty
- Faculté des lettres et des sciences humaines
- Department
- Département de Psychologie
- Language
-
- English
- Classification
- Psychology
- License
-
CC BY
- Open access status
- gold
- Identifiers
-
- DOI 10.1038/s41598-025-25424-3
- ISSN 2045-2322
- Persistent URL
- https://folia.unifr.ch/unifr/documents/333793
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