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The respiratory tract is an attractive target organ for novel diagnostic and therapeutic applications with nano-sized carriers, but their immune effects and...
The extent to which maternal smoking in pregnancy (MSP) has persisting effects on respiratory health remains uncertain and the mechanisms involved are not...
We tested whether maternal vitamin D insufficiency during pregnancy is related to the autism phenotype.
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a commonly occurring chronic skin disease with high heritability. Apart from filaggrin (FLG), the genes influencing atopic...
The purpose of this Review was to give an overview of the recent research into whether a lack of vitamin D contributes to the development of atopy and asthma...
The authors previously reported an increased risk of hospitalisation for acute lower respiratory infection up to age 2 years in children delivered by...
We aimed to measure the antibody development to 2 bacteria in a birth cohort at high risk of allergic disease, and to assess which responses are asthma-linked.
Incomplete maturation of immune regulatory functions at birth is antecedent to the heightened risk for severe respiratory infections during infancy. Our forerunner animal model studies demonstrated that maternal treatment with the microbial-derived immune training agent OM-85 during pregnancy promotes accelerated postnatal maturation of mechanisms that regulate inflammatory processes in the offspring airways.
Rhinovirus (RV) C can cause asymptomatic infection and respiratory illnesses ranging from the common cold to severe wheezing. The aim was to identify how age and other individual-level factors are associated with susceptibility to RV-C illnesses. Longitudinal data from the COAST (Childhood Origins of Asthma) birth cohort study were analyzed to determine relationships between age and RV-C infections. Neutralizing antibodies specific for RV-A and RV-C (three types each) were determined using a novel PCR-based assay.
In asthma, a significant portion of the interaction between genetics and environment occurs through microbiota. The proposed mechanisms behind this interaction are complex and at times contradictory. This review covers recent developments in our understanding of this interaction: the "microbial hypothesis" and the "farm effect"; the role of endotoxin and genetic variation in pattern recognition systems; the interaction with allergen exposure; the additional involvement of host gut and airway microbiota; the role of viral respiratory infections in interaction with the 17q21 and CDHR3 genetic loci; and the importance of in utero and early-life timing of exposures.