Atsuyuki Odani

Abstract Weaning involves rapid shifts in the gut microbiota, bowel irregularities, and increased infection risks. This exploratory, hypothesis-generating study examined whether daily supplementation with Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis M-63 (M-63) may influence bowel function, the gut environment, and general health during weaning.

Introduction Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is a diarrhoeagenic E. coli that causes diarrhoea not only in humans but also in various animals, such as pigs, cattle and sheep [Reference Dubreuil, Isaacson and Schifferli1]. Regardless of host, colonisation of the intestinal epithelia is an essential first step in the pathogenesis of ETEC infection mediated by a variety of colonisation factors (CFs) [Reference Vipin Madhavan and Sakellaris2].