MicrobeWorld

The gut-associated microbiome of extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants has microbial diversity and includes fungal species, bacteria, molds, viruses, parasitic organisms, and roundworms, according to a study published online Dec. 8 in PLoS One.

Mariam S. LaTuga, M.D., from the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C., and colleagues investigated the microbial communities present in the gastrointestinal tracts of 11 ELBW infants. Deep pyrosequencing techniques were used to examine the gut-associated microbiome in the first postnatal month.