J Neu

Abstract

The importance of the association between the human host and microbes during early life is receiving increased attention because this relationship is crucial to subsequent health. Recent studies have demonstrated that the maternal-fetal unit is not sterile and microbes are present in placenta, amniotic fluid, as well as the babies' first stools, the meconium. The interactions between the mother, fetus and the microbes continue after the infant leaves the uterus via breast-feeding by the mother, as well as close postnatal contact. We are just beginning to discover that perturbations of this relationship by antibiotics and various other drugs, maternal and neonatal diet, may result in life-long consequences. This article offers a brief introduction and should provide an appreciation of these early host-microbial interactions as they pertain to subsequent health and disease.