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Nutritional Microbiology/Microbiome/Microbiome Nutrition (Poster Session)

(P19-027-25) Untargeted Plasma Metabolomics Reveals Maternal Microbial Metabotypes Associated With Infant Growth Trajectories

Sunday, June 1, 2025
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM ET
Location: Poster Board B-68

    Presenting Author(s)

  • Dominick J. Lemas, PhD (he/him/his)

    Assistant Professor
    University of Florida
    Gainesville, Florida, United States

    • Co-Author(s)

  • SS

    Samih Samaan

    University of Florida, United States

  • CP

    Caroline Pujol

    University of Florida, Florida, United States

  • MH

    Michele Himadi

    University of Florida, Florida, United States

  • MF

    Magda Francois, M.S.

    Clinical Research Coordinator III
    Department of Health Outcomes and Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine, University of Florida
    Gainesville, Florida, United States

  • TG

    Timothy Garrett, Ph.D.

    Associate Professor
    Department of Pathology, Immunology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida
    Gainesville, Florida, United States

  • LS

    Larissa Strath, PhD

    Assistant Professor
    University of Florida
    Gainesville, Florida, United States

Disclosure(s):
Dominick J. Lemas, PhD: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.
Larissa Strath, PhD: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.


Objectives: Pre-pregnancy body mass index (ppBMI) is strongly associated with an elevated risk of pediatric obesity and long-term cardiometabolic disease in offspring. However, the biological mechanisms driving these associations remain poorly understood. Recent evidence highlights maternal metabolic health as a critical factor that shapes infant growth trajectories and metabolic programming. The maternal gut microbiome and its metabolites have emerged as critical factors influencing the metabolic environment of pregnancy and, subsequently, infant health outcomes.

This study aimed to leverage untargeted plasma metabolomics to identify maternal microbial-derived metabotypes and assess their associations with infant outcomes during the first year of life.

Methods: Participants were enrolled in a longitudinal study between 30 and 36 weeks of pregnancy and classified as having either normal weight (ppBMI ≥ 18.5 and < 25 kg/m²) or obesity (ppBMI ≥ 30.0 kg/m²). Maternal plasma samples (n = 83) were collected during the third trimester (34–38 weeks of gestation) and analyzed using untargeted metabolomics on a Thermo Q-Exactive Orbitrap. K-means clustering was performed on microbial-derived metabolites to define distinct metabotypes. Linear regression models, adjusted for maternal age, ppBMI, gestational age, and infant sex, were used to evaluate associations between these metabotypes and infant outcomes, including growth trajectories and metabolic indicators.

Results: Five distinct microbial metabotypes were identified, with significant associations between metabotypes and infant weight at two months of age (p=0.004). Post hoc analysis revealed a 12% difference in infant weight between clusters 1 and 5, highlighting the potential impact of maternal microbial-derived metabotypes on early infant growth.

Conclusions: This study demonstrates that maternal microbial-derived metabotypes are significantly associated with infant growth outcomes during early life. We found maternal metabotypes were linked to differences in infant weight at two months of age, even after accounting for maternal and infant covariates. These findings suggest that the maternal microbiome may serve as a critical mediator of infant growth trajectories and long-term health.

Funding Sources: K01-DK115632