Oral tolerance induced by transfer of food antigens via breast milk of allergic mothers prevents offspring from developing allergic symptoms in a mouse food allergy model.

ABSTRACT: We examined whether maternal exposure to food antigens during lactation and maternal allergic status would affect the development of food allergy in offspring. OVA-sensitized or OVA-nonsensitized BALB/c female mice were exposed or unexposed to OVA during lactation. After weaning, their offspring were systemically sensitized twice with OVA and repeatedly given OVA by oral intubation. While 97.1% of the mice breastfed by OVA-nonsensitized and OVA-unexposed mothers developed allergic diarrhea, 59.7% of the mice breastfed by OVA-exposed nonallergic mothers during lactation and 24.6% of the mice breastfed by OVA-exposed allergic mothers during lactation developed food allergy. Furthermore, OVA was detected in breast-milk from OVA-exposed nonallergic mothers during lactation (4.6 ± 0.5 μg/mL). I

SUBMITTER: Yamamoto T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3310277 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature