{"doi":"10.1016/j.chom.2025.09.006","title":"The microbiota extends the reproductive lifespan of mice by safeguarding the ovarian reserve","abstract":"Infertility affects one in six people, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We show that the microbiota governs female reproductive longevity in mice. Germ-free mice have fewer primordial follicles, increased atresia, and ovarian fibrosis, leading to smaller litters, fewer offspring, and a shorter reproductive lifespan. Germ-free mice are born with a similar ovarian reserve but display excessive activation, impaired progression, and increased atresia during post-natal development. Microbiome colonization during a critical post-natal window rescues premature ovarian reserve loss by normalizing follicle kinetics and gene expression patterns. These changes parallel increased short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and SCFA administration mitigates ovarian dysfunction in germ-free mice. Similar oocyte dysfunction occurred in conventionally raised mice fed a high-fat diet, but additional dietary fiber helped preserve oocyte quality and embryo competence. Thus, host-microbe interactions shape female fertility, and microbiota-targeted interventions may offer strategies to address reproductive disorders.","journal":"Cell Host & Microbe","year":2025,"id":512262,"datarank":0.0,"base_score":0.0,"endowment":0.0,"self_citation_contribution":0.0,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.0,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":13,"citer_count":0,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":0.9551,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":true,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":"2025-01-01","fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":511804,"name":"Julie P. Goff","orcid":null,"position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372386,"name":"Amanda Reshke","orcid":null,"position":2,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372387,"name":"Erin Wilderoter","orcid":null,"position":3,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372388,"name":"Nyasha Mafarachisi","orcid":null,"position":4,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":909571,"name":"Antonija Kolobaric","orcid":"0000-0001-7326-585X","position":5,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":458335,"name":"Sheng Yi","orcid":"0000-0003-1316-3370","position":6,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":237068,"name":"Steven J. Mullett","orcid":"0009-0005-6971-9288","position":7,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372389,"name":"Gabrielle E. King","orcid":null,"position":8,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372390,"name":"Jacob D. DeSchepper","orcid":null,"position":9,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1372391,"name":"Richard J. Bookser","orcid":null,"position":10,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":504596,"name":"Carlos A. Castro","orcid":"0000-0003-2419-3604","position":11,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1015227,"name":"Stacy L. Gelhaus","orcid":null,"position":12,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":493804,"name":"Mayara Grizotte-Lake","orcid":"0000-0003-3685-6815","position":13,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":242915,"name":"Kathleen E. Morrison","orcid":"0000-0002-3665-4757","position":14,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1371718,"name":"Anthony J. Zeleznik","orcid":"0000-0001-6371-8763","position":15,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":255655,"name":"Timothy W. Hand","orcid":"0000-0002-2684-9462","position":16,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":392908,"name":"Miguel A. Brieño‐Enríquez","orcid":"0000-0002-8806-0918","position":17,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":242916,"name":"Eldin Jašarević","orcid":"0000-0001-8174-0710","position":18,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":235829,"name":"Sarah K. Munyoki","orcid":"0000-0001-6608-9130","position":0,"is_corresponding":true}],"reference_count":145,"raw_metadata":null,"created_at":"2026-07-19T02:48:06.263458Z","pmid":"41005310","pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}