The present study was performed to investigate neonatal auditory perception function by quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) and auditory event-related potentials (aERPs) and identify the characteristics of auditory perception development in newborns. Fifty-three normal full-term neonates were divided into three groups according their age in days. An auditory oddball paradigm was used. QEEG (resting state and task state) and aERPs were performed. EEG δ power in the resting and task states and at different ages was respectively analyzed. The N2 area and latency of aERPs at different ages were also compared. The four main findings of this study are as follows. First, the increase in the EEG δ power was significantly greater in the task than resting state in Group 3 at the Fz lead (t = −3.371, P = 0.004) and in Groups 2 and 3 at the Cz lead (Group 2: t = −3.149, P = 0.005; Group 3: t = −3.609, P = 0.002). Second, the δ power gradually increased from 1 to 10 days of age (Group 1), peaked at 11 to 20 days (Group 2), and gradually decreased from 21 to 28 days (Group 3). The data in the Fz lead during the task state and in the Cz lead during the resting and task states were statistically significant (F = 5.875, P = 0.005; F = 5.523, P = 0.007; and F = 5.402, P = 0.008, respectively). Third, the N2 area significantly increased with age by presentation of target stimuli (F = 5.26, P = 0.01). The N2 area increased most significantly from 21 to 28 days (Group 3). Finally, the N2 latency significantly decreased with age (Fz lead: F = 4.66, P = 0.023; Cz lead: F = 7.18, P = 0.005). The N2 latency decreased most significantly from 11 to 20 days of age (Group 2). Rapid cognitive development occurs during the neonatal period. In the first several days after birth, the EEG δ power and N2 area manifested the characteristic performance of identifying task information. QEEG and aERP measurement can be used as objective indices with which to evaluate auditory perception development in neonates.

To study the short-term effects of a single-dose chloral hydrate on neonatal auditory perception by measuring auditory event-related potentials (aERPs). Thirty-nine full-term neonates, aged 2–28 days and weighing 2980–4350 g, were divided into two groups including a chloral hydrate group (CH group, n = 17) and a non-chloral hydrate control group (non-CH group, n = 22). The CH group was given single-dose chloral hydrate (30 mg/kg) orally before aERPs measurement. An auditory oddball paradigm was used to elicit aERPs. P2 and N2 components of the ERP were recorded from electrodes at the Fz and Cz locations, and the areas under their curves (P2 and N2 areas) were calculated for the comparison between two groups. Significant differences was found in the P2 area between the two groups at Fz and Cz (Fz: F (1,37) = 487.75, P < 0.05; Cz: F (1,37) = 1465.94, P < 0.05). Similarly, significant difference was also in the N2 area between the two groups at both locations (Fz: F(1,37) = 153.38, P < 0.05; Cz: F(1,37) = 798.42, P < 0.05). A single-dose of chloral hydrate impacts neonatal auditory perception in the short-term. Long-term effects will also be studied in future.

Breast milk can improve infant health by exerting beneficial effects on the developing gut microbiota and metabolites. However, infant formula composition undergoes continual refinement to better approximate breast milk. This study aimed to timely monitor the evolving disparities in the gut microenvironment between breastfed (BF) and formula‐fed (FF) infants. This prospective cohort study enrolled 44 healthy infants at 6 months of age, stratified by infant feeding modality into BF ( n = 27) and FF ( n = 17) groups. Fecal samples of all infants were collected and tested. Fecal microbiota was tested via full‐length 16S rRNA sequencing, and fecal metabolites were tested via untargeted UPLC‐MS/MS metabolomics. Associations between gut microbiota and metabolites were evaluated using Spearman's rank correlation test. Bacterial full‐length 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis revealed that Escherichia, Staphylococcus, Haemophilus, and Rothia were more enriched in the BF group, but Enterococcus and Mediterraneibacter were more enriched in the FF group conversely ( p < 0.05). UPLC‐MS/MS metabolomic profiling revealed 600 dysregulated metabolites ( p < 0.05) discriminating BF and FF infants, with 225 metabolites up‐regulated and 375 metabolites down‐regulated in the BF group. Further analysis of the significantly differential metabolites of the top 100 Variable Importance in Projection (VIP) revealed that 12 metabolites could be mapped onto Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes database (KEGG) pathways, in which the metabolites were mostly mapped onto Arachidonic acid (AA) metabolism and were down‐regulated in the BF group, including Thromboxane B2 (TXB2), 5‐hydroxyeicosatetraenoid acid (HETE), (15S)‐Prostaglandin A2 (PGA2), and 11‐dehydro‐TXB2. Breastfeeding establishes a distinct ecological imprinting on the infant gut, promoting specific taxa and downregulating pro‐inflammatory fecal AA metabolites. These disparities suggest breastfeeding uniquely modulates the microbial‐metabolic axis to maintain a lower inflammatory tone, offering immunological advantages despite modern formula innovations.