ERC and SNSF Starting Grants are prestigious and highly competitive funding programmes that support researchers at an early stage of their careers, enabling them to establish their own research groups and pursue innovative research projects.
Prof Tepekule investigates how children’s health is shaped by the interactions between the immune system and gut microbiota in early childhood. Building on her previous work, the new funding will enable her to take this research a step further and address a fundamental question in early-life health: why do some infants recover from disruptions to the gut microbiome, while others develop lasting health problems?
The resilience paradox
Early disruptions to the gut microbiome can influence immune development and long-term health. Yet most infants exposed to antibiotics, infections, or dietary changes continue to thrive. Why some disruptions lead to chronic disease while others have no lasting effects remains poorly understood.
The RESILIENT project will establish a quantitative framework to study how the gut microbiome and immune system develop together in infants. It aims to identify when, in whom, and through which pathways disruptions can have lasting effects.
The researchers will model how the microbiome, gut barrier, and immune system change over time. They will compare infants exposed to disruptions such as antibiotics or infections with infants who have similar backgrounds but were not exposed. This novel matching approach will help identify critical periods when disruptions have the greatest and most lasting effects.
The team will also investigate whether factors around birth, such as mode of delivery, gestational age, or colostrum intake, leave a lasting biological imprint that affects how infants respond to later disruptions.
A more proactive approach to pediatric care
The model will allow the researchers to explore potential interventions, including optimising antibiotic use, developing targeted probiotics to support gut health, and refining feeding practices.
Ultimately, the project aims to identify infants at risk of long-term health problems before these effects become difficult to reverse. In the longer term, its findings could contribute to a more proactive approach to pediatric care, helping address risks before they develop into lasting health problems.
More about the Pediatric Desease Modeling Lab
