A mother mouse needs a diverse gut microbiome to form a healthy placenta

Key takeawaysPregnant mice with no gut microbiome or diminished microbiomes aren ’t able to form the healthy placentas necessary for proper fetal development.UCLA scientists found that supplementing these mice with short-chain fatty acids — byproducts of microbe metabolism — promoted healthy placental development.The researchers hope the findings could one day inform new treatment strategies for pregnant women and their developing fetuses.The bacteria found naturally in the digestive tract do a lot more than help digest food.Scientists have established that these microbial communities are also involved with the immune system and play a role in mental health. Now, they can add helping grow a healthy placenta during pregnancy to the list of unexpected ways the gut microbiome influences health and well-being.New research led by UCLA scientists and published today in the journalScience  Advances shows that mice with depleted gut microbiomes had smaller placentas than normal mice and that the network of blood vessels between the placenta and the fetus was also less developed.Either of these conditions could deprive a fetus of nutrients, oxygen and other things it needs to grow. But when malnourished pregnant mice that had been fed low-protein diets and had diminished microbiomes were supplemented with short-chain fatty acids, which are produced by gut microbes, their placentas grew to normal size, the researchers said.The new findings add to mounting evidence that in additi...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news