International journal of obesity : journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity
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Mother-to-newborn transmission of obesity-associated microbiota may be modified by birth mode (vaginal vs. Cesarean delivery). Prospective data to test this hypothesis are still sparse. ⋯ Among vaginally-delivered infants, maternal overweight and obesity was associated with altered infant gut microbiome composition and higher diversity. These associations were not observed in Cesarean-delivered infants, whose microbiome development differs from vaginally-delivered infants. Our study provides additional evidence of birth-mode dependent associations of maternal body weight status with the infant gut microbiota. The role of these associations in mediating the intergenerational cycle of obesity warrants further examination.