Observational studyBrain, behavior, and immunity2015
Gut microbiome composition is associated with temperament during early childhood.
Observational study in Brain, behavior, and immunity, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 83 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
83 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Pooled it
- Microbiome and well-being: a meta-analysis.NPJ biofilms and microbiomes · 2025Pooled it
- The development of the gut microbiome and temperament during infancy and early childhood: A systematic review.Developmental psychobiology · 2022Pooled it
- Probiotics for Gastrointestinal Symptoms and Quality of Life in Autism: A Placebo-Controlled Pilot Trial.Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology · 2019Trial
- Trial
- The relationship between the gut microbiota and neuropsychological development and behaviour during childhood and adolescence: a systematic review of epidemiological studies.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026Review
- Association between the gut microbiome and plasma metabolites linked to vocalization-based temperament in Merino sheep.Microbiome · 2026Article
- Gut microbiota dysbiosis at the interface of neuropsychiatric disorders and their dermatological comorbidities.Gut microbes · 2025Review
- Supplementation with abioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Review
- The Gut Microbiome and Its Impact on Mood and Decision-Making: A Mechanistic and Therapeutic Review.Nutrients · 2025Review
- The Efficacy of Nutritional Interventions in Reducing Childhood/Youth Aggressive and Antisocial Behavior: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Campbell systematic reviews · 2025Review
- Gut microbiota maturation and early behavioral and cognitive development.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Longitudinal associations between the infant gut microbiome and negative affect in toddlerhood.Development and psychopathology · 2025Article
- The role of the gut microbiome in the associations between lead exposure and child neurodevelopment.Toxicology letters · 2025Review
- Prenatal PMEnvironment & health (Washington, D.C.) · 2024Article
- Revealing Interactions of Gut Microbiota and Metabolite in Confined Environments Using High-Throughput Sequencing and Metabolomic Analysis.Nutrients · 2024Article
- Turning stress into success: A festschrift in honor of Janice Kiecolt-Glaser.Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology · 2024Article
- Postnatal nighttime light exposure and infant temperament at age 12 months: mediating role of genus Akkermansia.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2024Article
- PROTOCOL: The efficacy of nutritional interventions in reducing childhood/youth aggressive and antisocial behavior: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Campbell systematic reviews · 2024Article
23 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundUnderstanding the dynamics of the gut-brain axis has clinical implications for physical and mental health conditions, including obesity and anxiety. As such disorders have early life antecedents, it is of value to determine if associations between the gut microbiome and behavior are present in early life in humans.
methodsWe used next generation pyrosequencing to examine associations between the community structure of the gut microbiome and maternal ratings of child temperament in 77 children at 18-27months of age. It was hypothesized that children would differ in their gut microbial structure, as indicated by measures of alpha and beta diversity, based on their temperamental characteristics.
resultsAmong both boys and girls, greater Surgency/Extraversion was associated greater phylogenetic diversity. In addition, among boys only, subscales loading on this composite scale were associated with differences in phylogenetic diversity, the Shannon Diversity index (SDI), beta diversity, and differences in abundances of Dialister, Rikenellaceae, Ruminococcaceae, and Parabacteroides. In girls only, higher Effortful Control was associated with a lower SDI score and differences in both beta diversity and Rikenellaceae were observed in relation to Fear. Some differences in dietary patterns were observed in relation to temperament, but these did not account for the observed differences in the microbiome.
conclusionsDifferences in gut microbiome composition, including alpha diversity, beta diversity, and abundances of specific bacterial species, were observed in association with temperament in toddlers. This study was cross-sectional and observational and, therefore, does not permit determination of the causal direction of effects. However, if bidirectional brain-gut relationships are present in humans in early life, this may represent an opportunity for intervention relevant to physical as well as mental health disorders.
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