Variation among populations in the immune protein composition of mother's milk reflects subsistence pattern.

ABSTRACT:

Lay summary

Adaptive immune proteins in mothers' milk are more variable than innate immune proteins across populations and subsistence strategies. These results suggest that the immune defenses in milk are shaped by a mother's environment throughout her life.

Background and objectives

Mother's milk contains immune proteins that play critical roles in protecting the infant from infection and priming the infant's developing immune system during early life. The composition of these molecules in milk, particularly the acquired immune proteins, is thought to reflect a mother's immunological exposures throughout her life. In this study, we examine the composition of innate and acquired immune proteins in milk across seven populations with diverse disease and cultural ecologies.

SUBMITTER: Klein LD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6222208 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature