A preliminary study of gut microbiome variation and HPA axis reactivity in healthy infants

Samuel Rosin; Kai Xia; M Andrea Azcarate-Peril; Alexander L Carlson; Cathi B Propper; Amanda L Thompson; Karen Grewen; Rebecca C Knickmeyer

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.105046

A preliminary study of gut microbiome variation and HPA axis reactivity in healthy infants

Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2021 Feb:124:105046. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.105046. Epub 2020 Nov 12.

Authors

Samuel Rosin¹, Kai Xia², M Andrea Azcarate-Peril³, Alexander L Carlson², Cathi B Propper⁴, Amanda L Thompson⁵, Karen Grewen², Rebecca C Knickmeyer⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
² Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
³ Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Microbiome Core Facility, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
⁴ Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
⁵ Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Department of Pediatrics and Human Development, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA; Institute for Quantitative Health Sciences and Engineering, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA; C-RAIND Fellow, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA. Electronic address: knickmey@msu.edu.

Abstract

The Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal (HPA) axis regulates hormonal responses to stress in both humans and animals and is dysregulated in a wide range of psychiatric disorders. There is strong evidence from rodent studies that gut microbial composition influences HPA axis development. In humans, variation in the gut microbiome has been associated with several psychological domains including depression and cognitive development, but studies focused on HPA axis development are still lacking. We tested whether differences in microbial composition are associated with HPA axis reactivity in a pilot study of 34 healthy human infants. HPA axis reactivity was assessed by measuring salivary cortisol in samples taken both before and after a heel stick, and 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing was used for identification and relative quantification of bacterial taxa. Subjects' alpha diversity levels showed a moderate positive association with their cortisol reactivity at one month of age. Exploratory genus-level analyses suggest that Staphylococcus, Prevotella, and genera in the order Lachnospiraceae may be related to cortisol reactivity at one month as well. The current study gives support for the endocrine pathway as a potential mediator in the microbiome-gut-brain axis during infancy, and as such provides motivation for future clinical work to support the development of stress-response systems through the manipulation of gut microbes.

Keywords: Alpha diversity; Cortisol reactivity; Gut microbiome; HPA axis; Infant stress response.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Gastrointestinal Microbiome*
Hydrocortisone
Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System
Pilot Projects
Pituitary-Adrenal System*
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Stress, Psychological

Substances

RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Hydrocortisone

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

Grants and funding