Thymic size is increased by infancy, but not pregnancy, nutritional supplementation in rural Gambian children: a randomized clinical trial.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Thymic size in early infancy predicts subsequent survival in low-income settings. The human thymus develops from early gestation, is most active in early life and is highly sensitive to malnutrition. Our objective was to test whether thymic size in infancy could be increased by maternal and/or infant nutritional supplementation.

Methods

The Early Nutrition and Immune Development (ENID) Trial was a randomized 2 × 2 × 2 factorial, partially blinded trial of nutritional supplementation conducted in rural Gambia, West Africa. Pregnant women (N = 875) were randomized to four intervention groups (iron-folate (standard care), multiple micronutrients, protein energy or protein energy + multiple micronutrients at 'booking' (mean gestational age at enrolment = 13.6 weeks, r

SUBMITTER: Moore SE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6378709 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature