Advances in the correlation between early-life gut microbiota characteristics and neurodevelopment in infants and young children

WEI Xinxin; ZHAO Yan; L Zhihai; CHEN Shidong; MIAO Yun

doi:10.11852/zgetbjzz2025-0980

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Chinese Journal of Child Health Care ›› 2026, Vol. 34 ›› Issue (11) : 1274-1278. DOI: 10.11852/zgetbjzz2025-0980

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Advances in the correlation between early-life gut microbiota characteristics and neurodevelopment in infants and young children

WEI Xinxin^1,2 , ZHAO Yan², LÜ Zhihai², CHEN Shidong¹, MIAO Yun¹

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Abstract

The early-life gut microbiota is a crucial biological determinant of neurodevelopment in infants and young children, exerting effects that initiate in early life and persist throughout the lifespan.Understanding how the gut microbiota influences neurocognitive behavior and brain structure/function via key microbial communities represents a major frontier and challenge in gut-brain axis research.This review summarizes the relationship between infant gut microbiota characteristics and neurodevelopment, with the aim of identifying potential clinical biomarkers and providing new insights and directions for predicting and treating neurodevelopmental disorders.

Key words

early life microbiome / gut-brain axis / neurodevelopment / bacteroides

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WEI Xinxin , ZHAO Yan, LÜ Zhihai, CHEN Shidong, MIAO Yun. Advances in the correlation between early-life gut microbiota characteristics and neurodevelopment in infants and young children[J]. Chinese Journal of Child Health Care. 2026, 34(11): 1274-1278 https://doi.org/10.11852/zgetbjzz2025-0980

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