Research Projects

Stunting is a global issue, with 25% of children under five years old being stunted. India has the highest number of stunted children (40.6 million) and one-third of the global burden. Factors contributing to stunting include poor hygiene, limited food sources, maternal health and nutrition status, feeding practices, and premature delivery. Preterm born and low birth weight babies are more likely to face developmental retardation, poor immunity, and consistent infections, leading to stunting. The prevalence of stunting in children at 6 months of age is around 16-20%, with preterm infants (35%). The gut microbiome colonization significantly differs between preterm and term infants and plays a major role in shaping their initial immunity. Any imbalance in gut microbiome can lead to reduced immunity and future health problems. Studies have shown that specific gut microbial pathways produce metabolites that can alter host gene expression profiles by epigenetic modifications. This study hypothesizes that perturbation in the gut microbiome-host epigenome axis of preterm infants can predispose them to stunting in early childhood. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing will be conducted on stool DNA samples of 100 stunted and 100 non-stunted preterm babies at 6 months of age to identify differences in gut microbial taxa composition and diversity. Epigenomic profiles from blood will be characterized in a large subset of samples with gut microbiome signatures. The study aims to determine the mechanistic role of gut microbiome in shaping host epigenome and predict metabolites of microbial origin in inhibiting cell proliferation, directly linked to stunting.