ArticlePediatric research2025
Impact of donor human milk pasteurization methods on the gut microbiome of preterm infants.
Article in Pediatric research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Balancing access to donor human milk: Rationing vs expanding use.Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 2026Review
- The human breast milk microbiome: a landscape review of its composition, origins, and impact on infant health.Archives of microbiology · 2026Review
- Review of the biological gap between mother's own milk and pasteurized donor milk: implications for intestinal health in preterm infants.Pediatric research · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPreterm infants are often fed donor human milk (DHM) when the mother's own milk is insufficient or not available. Holder or Retort pasteurization is used to inactivate potential pathogens in DHM. The effects of DHM pasteurization methods on the infant gut microbiome are unknown.
methodsTo compare the gut microbiome and clinical outcomes between preterm infants fed Holder- versus Retort-pasteurized DHM, we performed weekly collections of stool samples from infants born <34 weeks' gestation and/or <1500 g birth weight. We analyzed stool samples from 150 patients exclusively fed DHM [Retort (n = 80), Holder (n = 54)] or exclusively fed mother's own milk (n = 16). Whole-metagenome sequencing was performed to assess microbiome composition, diversity, and functional enrichment.
resultsCompared to infants fed Retort-pasteurized DHM, infants fed Holder-pasteurized DHM showed higher alpha-diversity (Chao-1 p = 0.007) and a higher abundance of beneficial anaerobes, such as Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, Clostridium spp., and Bifidobacterium spp. Functional enrichment analysis revealed significant differences in carbohydrate metabolism, transport systems, and regulatory pathways between feeding groups. There were no statistically significant differences in short-term clinical outcomes, such as necrotizing enterocolitis, length of hospitalization or death.
conclusionDifferences in pasteurization methods for DHM resulted in measurable gut microbiome changes in preterm infants. IMPACT: It is known that the preterm infant gut microbiota is different in infants fed pasteurized donor milk compared to mother's own milk. However, the impact of different pasteurization methods for donor milk on the infant gut microbiome is unknown. We show that the type of pasteurization of donor human milk influences the gut microbiome and its function in preterm infants. In contrast to feeding Retort-pasteurized donor human milk, feeding Holder-pasteurized donor human milk generates an infant gut microbiome similar to feeding mother's own milk.
Identifiers
40957978What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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