Intestinal epithelium in early life

Rapid development of the fetal and neonatal intestine is required to meet the growth requirements of early life and form a protective barrier against external insults encountered by the intestinal mucosa. The fetus receives nutrition via the placenta and is protected from harmful pathogens in utero, which leads to intestinal development in a relatively quiescent environment. Upon delivery, the intestinal mucosa is suddenly tasked with providing host defense and meeting nutritional demands. To serve these functions, an array of specialized epithelial cells develop from intestinal stem cells starting in utero and continuing postnatally. Intestinal disease results when these homeostatic processes are interrupted. For preterm neonates, the most common pathology resulting from epithelial barrier dysfunction is necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). In this review, we discuss the normal development and function of the intestinal epithelium in early life as well as how disruption of these processes can lead to NEC.