Maternal Microbiome: A Key to Unlocking Pediatric Liver Health

In a preclinical study at the University of Oklahoma, maternal indole supplementation during pregnancy and lactation reduced offspring fatty liver after a postweaning high‑fat, high‑sugar challenge.

The exposed group comprised offspring of indole‑supplemented dams who were later challenged postweaning with a high‑fat, high‑sugar regimen; the primary endpoint was reduced hepatic steatosis accompanied by improvements in metabolic markers.

In the model, maternal mice received indole throughout pregnancy and lactation. Their offspring were then subjected to a controlled high‑fat, high‑sugar metabolic challenge to reveal susceptibility to hepatic lipid accumulation.

Results showed reduced hepatic steatosis and favorable shifts in metabolic markers among offspring of supplemented dams—findings that point to a protective, data‑driven directionality.

Importantly, these experiments signal a mechanistic, preventive effect rather than evidence that maternal indole supplementation is an established clinical intervention.

The pattern of results aligns with microbiome‑mediated signaling as a mediator of protection against fatty liver in exposed offspring.

The investigators also reported pathway‑level changes: attenuation of inflammatory signaling, modulation of the gut–liver axis, and altered expression of genes linked to lipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity.

Key translational limits include reliance on a mouse model rather than human subjects, a controlled maternal diet context, and unresolved dosing and timing parameters for maternal indole.

Safety in pregnancy, placental transfer dynamics, and generalizability across genetic and dietary backgrounds remain unknown.