OBJECTIVE. We examined the presence of a natural bacterial inoculum in breast milk and
its intracellular transport from the maternal intestine to the breast through the circulation.
METHODS. Breast milk and peripheral blood were collected aseptically from healthy donors
at various times after delivery, and the presence of viable bacteria was determined through
plating. Temporal temperature gradient gel electrophoresis was used to examine the
bacterial ribosomal DNA content in milk cells, maternal peripheral blood mononuclear cells …