The composition of the gut microbiota following early-life antibiotic exposure affects host health and longevity in later life
Miriam A. Lynn, Georgina L. Eden, Feargal J. Ryan, Julien Bensalem, Xuemin Wang, Stephen J. Blake, Jocelyn M. Choo, Yee Tee Chern, Anastasia Sribnaia, Jane James, Saoirse C. Benson, Lauren Sandeman, Jianling Xie, Sofia Hassiotis, Emily Sun, Alyce M. Martin, Marianne Keller, Damien J. Keating, Timothy J. Sargeant, Christopher G. Proud, Steve Wesselingh, Geraint B. Rogers, David J. Lynn
Abstract
Studies investigating whether there is a causative link between the gut microbiota and lifespan have largely been restricted to invertebrates or to mice with a reduced lifespan because of a genetic deficiency. We investigate the effect of early-life antibiotic exposure on otherwise healthy, normal chow-fed, wild-type mice, monitoring these mice for more than 700 days in comparison with untreated control mice. We demonstrate the emergence of two different low-diversity community types, post-antibiotic microbiota (PAM) I and PAM II, following antibiotic exposure. PAM II but not PAM I mice have impaired immunity, increased insulin resistance, and evidence of increased inflammaging in later life as well as a reduced lifespan. Our data suggest that differences in the composition of the gut microbiota following antibiotic exposure differentially affect host health and longevity in later life.