Secretory antibodies in breast milk promote long-term intestinal homeostasis by regulating the gut microbiota and host gene expression.

ABSTRACT: Maintenance of intestinal homeostasis requires a healthy relationship between the commensal gut microbiota and the host immune system. Breast milk supplies the first source of antigen-specific immune protection in the gastrointestinal tract of suckling mammals, in the form of secretory IgA (SIgA). SIgA is transported across glandular and mucosal epithelial cells into external secretions by the polymeric Ig receptor (pIgR). Here, a breeding scheme with polymeric Ig receptor-sufficient and -deficient mice was used to study the effects of breast milk-derived SIgA on development of the gut microbiota and host intestinal immunity. Early exposure to maternal SIgA prevented the translocation of aerobic bacteria from the neonatal gut into draining lymph nodes, including the opportunistic pathogen

SUBMITTER: Rogier EW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3939878 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature