Pregnancy is a complex physiological process associated with successive changes in the uterine environment that facilitates childbirth. The period of gestation varies from 37-42 weeks in Term Birth and < 37 weeks in Preterm Birth (PTB). Globally, PTB is one of the leading cause of child mortality and morbidity. Many preterm survivors face a lifetime of disability, including respiratory, learni
ng, visual disability and the number of premature babies is increasing exponentially with time. Identification of the complex aetiologies behind premature delivery is a big challenge worldwide. The vagina plays an important role in childbirth and is also home to a population of facultative and obligate anaerobic microorganisms that maintains the hygiene and pH of the vaginal milieu. This polymicrobial community is difficult to characterise through conventional microbiological culture based methods and are collectively termed as the Vaginal Microbiome. Recently, the role of oral as well as placental microbiome in preterm birth has also gained much interest. I am interested to investigate the change in composition and diversity of the Maternal Microbiome associated with Preterm birth in India. A multi-omics approach will be undertaken to dissect the host-microbiome interactions between host factors and differentially enriched microbial gene families as well as functional pathways that ultimately lead to Preterm Birth.
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