THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN GUT MICROBIAL PROGRAMMING AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT DURING THE EARLY STAGE OF LIFE HAS BEEN SUGGESTED AND THE GUT MICROBIOME HAS BECOME A FOCUS OF UNDERSTANDING NEUROCOGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT DURING THE PERINATAL PERIOD. EARLY IN LIFE, THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE GUT MICROBIOME IS MAINLY INFLUENCED BY MATERNAL DIETS. EGGS AND DOCOSAHEXAENOIC ACIDS (DHA) ARE KNOWN TO BENEFIT COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN FETUSES AND INFANTS. THE POTENTIAL SYNERGISM OF EGGS AND DHA ON NEUROFUNCTION HAS BEEN SUGGESTED BY CONTROLLING OXIDATIVE STRESS IN BRAIN. OUR PRELIMINARY STUDY DEMONSTRATED THAT MATERNAL SUPPLEMENTATION OF DHA OF SOWS DURING GESTATION AND LACTATION ENHANCES LEARNING, MEMORY AND EXPLORATORY BEHAVIOR AND INCREASES BRAIN WHITE MATTER MATURATION OF THE OFFSPRING. THESE BENEFICAL EFFECTS OCCUR CONCURRENTLY WITH CHANGES IN GUT MICROBIOTA. IN THIS PROPOSED STUDY, WE WILL INVESTIGATE THE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF MATERNAL SUPPLEMENTATION OF EGGS PLUS DHA ON FETAL AND NEONATAL NEUROCOGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT, AND WE WILL FURTHER ELUCIDATE THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO THE EARLY PROGRAMMING OF THE GUT-BRAIN AXIS. WE WILL UTILIZE A PIG MODEL THAT HAS COMPARABLE BRAIN AND GUT ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY TO HUMANS, WHICH WILL LEAD TO RESULTS THAT ARE MORE PREDICTIVE OF HUMAN OUTCOMES.