Effect of salmon consumption during pregnancy on maternal and infant faecal microbiota, secretory IgA and calprotectin

Abstract

The gut microbiota plays an important role in the development of the immune and gastrointestinal systems of infants. In the present study, we investigated whether increased salmon consumption during pregnancy, maternal weight gain during pregnancy or mode of infant feeding alter the markers of gut immune defence and inflammation. Women (n 123) who rarely ate oily fish were randomly assigned to continue consuming their habitual diet or to consume two 150 g portions of farmed salmon per week from 20 weeks of pregnancy to delivery. Faecal samples were collected from the mothers (n 75) at 38 weeks of gestation and from their infants (n 38) on days 7, 14, 28 and 84 post-partum. Fluorescence in situ hybridisation was used to determine faecal microbiota composition and ELISA to measure faecal secretory IgA (sIgA) and calprotectin concentrations. There was no effect of salmon consumption on maternal faecal microbiota or on maternal or infant faecal sIgA and calprotectin concentrations. The degree of weight gain influenced maternal faecal microbiota, and the mode of infant feeding influenced infant faecal microbiota. Faecal samples collected from infants in the salmon group tended to have lower bacterial counts of the Atopobium cluster compared with those collected from infants in the control group (P¼ 0·097). This difference was significant in the formula-fed infants (P, 0·05), but not in the exclusively breast-fed infants. In conclusion, the impact of oily fish consumption during pregnancy on maternal and infant gut microbiota composition is limited, but significant differences are associated with maternal weight gain during pregnancy and mode of infant feeding.

Are we what we eat? Changes to the feed fatty acid composition of farmed salmon and its effects through the food chain

“…) Both lean and oily fish decreased plasma TAG Miles et al, 2011;Urwin et al, 2012Urwin et al, , 2014Noakes et al, 2012 Investigation of the impact of salmon in pregnancy; diet ingredients for the farmed salmon were specifically selected to be low in contaminants ( The salmon diet increased EPA and DHA in plasma PC in maternal blood, umbilical cord blood and breast milk, and decreased secretory IgA in breast milk (immunological factor provided in the milk). Maternal salmon consumption did not affect maternal or infant fecal microbiota or infant fecal IgA.…”

Association of Maternal Gestational Weight Gain With the Infant Fecal Microbiota

“…Prior studies have also observed associations between GWG and maternal microbiota, noting differences in several genera such as Clostridium , Escherichia, Bifidobacterium , and Bacteroides 25,26 . For example, Santacruz et al.…”

“…These variables were chosen based on a priori knowledge of differences in microbiota composition. 8,25 Given the relatively small number of infants, we included ≤2 covariates per model. We then determined if the relationship between GWG and fecal microbiota profiles was modified by infant feeding status; that is, did infant microbiota profiles vary by GWG within the group of breast-fed infants (n=66) and within the group of formula-fed infants (n=18).…”

Influence of diet on the gut microbiome and implications for human health

“…Finally, subjects with high monounsaturated fat intake did not experience shifts in the relative abundance of any bacterial genera, but did have overall reduced total bacterial load and plasma total- and LDL-cholesterol [49]. In line with these findings, consumption of salmon–which is high in mono and polyunsaturated fats—was not noted to alter fecal microbiota composition in 123 subjects either [50]. Studies in rats have shown that intake of a high-fat diet results in considerably less Lactobacillus intestinalis and disproportionately more propionate and acetate producing species, including Clostridiales, Bacteroides, and Enterobacteriales.…”