Sex- and brain region-specific alterations in brain volume in germ-free mice

Several lines of evidence demonstrate that microbiota influence brain development. Using high-resolution ex vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), this study examined the impact of microbiota status on brain volume and revealed microbiota-related differences that were sex and brain region dependent. Cortical and hippocampal regions demonstrate increased sensitivity to microbiota status during the first 5 weeks of postnatal life, effects that were greater in male germ-free mice. Conventionalization of germ-free mice at puberty did not normalize brain volume changes. These data add to the existing literature and highlight the need to focus more attention on early-life microbiota-brain axis mechanisms in order to understand the regulatory role of the microbiome in brain development.