A novel intervention to potentially improve the outcome of children with malnutrition
Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital have uncovered an intervention that could potentially improve outcomes for children with malnutrition, a condition that contributes to nearly half of all deaths among children younger than 5. The study appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
A new study from Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital suggests a potential intervention to improve outcomes for children suffering from malnutrition, a condition responsible for nearly half of all deaths among children under the age of 5. The researchers discovered that malnutrition causes intestinal barrier erosion, which allows bacteria to escape the gut and cause severe infections like sepsis, a leading cause of death in malnourished children.
This intestinal barrier damage is due to the interaction between malnutrition and the gut microbiome, rather than malnutrition alone. The team identified a previously underappreciated microbial metabolite called isovalerate, which supports intestinal barrier integrity. By providing isovalerate to malnourished mice through enemas or by feeding them leucine, an amino acid that gut bacteria convert into isovalerate, the researchers found that both strategies improved gut barrier function.
Although further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of this approach in malnourished children, the findings offer a promising new strategy to enhance outcomes in child malnutrition.
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