Breastfeeding babies may inhibit enterovirus growth

healthy gut bacteria seem to play a vital role in protecting humans from a range of diseases. But have you ever noticed billions of viruses associated with these bacteria?
found that newborns do not appear to be carrying any of these viruses, but within the first month of life, the gut quickly becomes a playground for billions of viruses. The formation of viral groups depends on whether the baby is breastfed, the researchers report in Nature. Breastfeeding regulates the gradual formation of neonatal viral community.
past decade or so, numerous studies of the gut microbiome (microbiome) have shown that they are associated with a range of diseases. Damage to gut bacteria can lead to diseases such as obesity, diabetes, depression and Parkinson's disease. But researchers in viral communityes closely related to enterobacteria know little about the existence of too many unstided viruses in humans.
if we purify and isolate virus particles from a healthy adult faeces, you'll find about a billion virus-like particles per 1 d's of feces," he said. Frederic Bushman of the University of Pennsylvania said.
bushman and colleagues studied 20 babies to learn more about the virus. They collected stool samples within a few days of birth and at 1 month old and 4 months old, respectively. The team looked for virus-like particles in each sample. These particles are thought to be viruses, and they look like viruses, but there have been no tests to prove that they are.
, only three babies appeared to contain virus-like particles in their feces. Bushman said this suggests that newborns do not carry the virus, but only the first ones at birth or shortly after birth. But within a month, the babies were carrying the virus at an adult level.
team sequenced whole genome bird guns with agents rich in viruses in infants and the entire microbiome, and then conducted targeted microbiological analysis to investigate the origin of these viral populations. The results showed that avant-garde bacteria were planted in the baby's intestines in the early stages of life; a month later, the bacteria-induced prephagy produced a major group of viral-like particles; and by the fourth month, the identifiable viruses replicated in human cells became more prominent.
like adults, most of these viruses appear to be the type of bacteria infected, and some are known to infect human cells. But the team found that the virus was not common in breastfed babies.
team found the same results in 125 U.S. infants between 3 and 4 months old and 100 4-month-old Botswanan infants.
Bushman believes that proteins and sugars in breast milk may stop the virus from growing, and that a decrease in the number of viruses will protect babies from infection. He added that breastfeeding is associated with other positive health outcomes in infants, but it is not clear to what extent this effect is associated with the presence of enterovirus. (Source: Xu Yue, China Science Journal)
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