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In the present study, we sought to evaluate the complement activation product C4d as a marker for lupus nephritis in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
This study identified that expsoure to folate has effects on the regulation of DNA methylation during fetal development.
Information is accumulating which implicates airway inflammation resulting from respiratory viral infections, acting against a background of atopy.
The hallmark of atopic asthma is transient airways hyperresponsiveness (AHR) preceded by aeroallergen-induced Th-cell activation.
The Pregnancy and Early Life Immunology team's overall research vision is targeted towards understanding immunological development during early life.
There is now considerable evidence demonstrating that both prenatal and postnatal exposure to particular classes of microbial stimuli can provide beneficial signals during early life immune development, resulting in the protection against future inflammatory disease.
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.
The gut microbiota is influenced by environmental factors such as food. Maternal diet during pregnancy modifies the gut microbiota composition and function, leading to the production of specific compounds that are transferred to the fetus and enhance the ontogeny and maturation of the immune system. Prebiotics are fermented by gut bacteria, leading to the release of short-chain fatty acids that can specifically interact with the immune system, inducing a switch toward tolerogenic populations and therefore conferring health benefits.
High risk for virus-induced asthma exacerbations in children is associated with an IRF7lo immunophenotype, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, we applied a Systems Biology approach to an animal model comprising rat strains manifesting high versus low susceptibility to experimental asthma, induced by virus/allergen coexposure, to elucidate the mechanism(s)-of-action of the high-risk asthma immunophenotype.
In addition to being a source of nutrients for the developing newborn, human milk contains thousands of bioactive compounds, which influence infant health in the short-term as exemplified by its major benefits on infectious disease prevention. Many of the human milk compounds also have the required characteristics to instruct immune development and guide long-term health.