A reverse metabolic approach to weaning: in silico identification of immune-beneficial infant gut bacteria, mining their metabolism for prebiotic feeds and sourcing these feeds in the natural product space

Weaning is a period of marked physiological change. The introduction of solid foods and the changes in milk consumption are accompanied by significant gastrointestinal, immune, developmental, and microbial adaptations. Defining a reduced number of infections as the desired health benefit for infants around weaning, we identified in silico (i.e., by advanced public domain mining) infant gut microbes as potential deliverers of this benefit. We then investigated the requirements of these bacteria for exogenous metabolites as potential prebiotic feeds that were subsequently searched for in the natural product space.