The Gut‒Breast Axis: Programming Health for Life

Rodríguez, Juan M.; Fernández, Leónides; Verhasselt, Valérie

doi:10.3390/nu13020606

Cited by 55 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 228 publications

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“…An enteromammary pathway has been described in rodents for gut plasma cells and microbiota that traffic from the maternal gut mucosa toward the mammary gland. [47][48][49] This suggests that such pathway could also happen for dietary antigen as well as for airborne antigens, which are mostly ingested. 50,51 Although the correlation between maternal exposure and antigen level in human milk is poor, a study showed a correlation between cow's milk b-lactoglobulin (b-LG) antigen levels in blood and milk.…”

Section: Gut-breast Axismentioning

confidence: 99%

Allergen shedding in human milk: Could it be key for immune system education and allergy prevention?

Macchiaverni

Rekima

Elsen

et al. 2021

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

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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 longterm health. Prebiotics, probiotics, and varied antimicrobial molecules all have the potential to shape the composition and function of the establishing gut microbiota, which is known to be a major determinant of immune function. Another and less explored way human milk can instruct long-term immunity is through antigen shedding. Here, we will review the evidence that antigens from maternal environment and more specifically from allergen sources are found in human milk. We will discuss data from rodent models and birth cohorts showing that allergen shedding in breast milk may influence long-term allergy risk. We will uncover the variables that may underlie heterogeneity in oral tolerance induction and allergy prevention in children breast-fed by allergen-exposed mothers. We will focus on the parameters that control antigen transfer to breast milk, on the unique biological characteristics of allergens in breast milk, and on the milk bioactive compounds that were found to influence immune response in offspring. We propose this understanding is fundamental to guide maternal interventions leading to lifelong allergen tolerance.

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Section: Gut-breast Axismentioning

confidence: 99%

Allergen shedding in human milk: Could it be key for immune system education and allergy prevention?

Macchiaverni

Rekima

Elsen

et al. 2021

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Self Cite

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“…Milk cell populations are highly dynamic, with high levels of inter-individual variability, and altered by stage of lactation, infant milk removal and the health of both the mother and infant. 37 , 57 – 59 …”

Section: The Microbiome and Cells Of Human Milk Downregulate Inflamma...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because human milk was believed to be sterile, any bacteria cultured from milk was considered to be either infective or contaminant washed back from the infant oral cavity and maternal skin. 36 , 37 Applying this pathogenic model of BLBI, antibiotics are commenced if:…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Re-thinking benign inflammation of the lactating breast: A mechanobiological model

Douglas

2022

Womens Health (Lond Engl)

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Despite the known benefits of breastfeeding for both infant and mother, clinical support for problems such as inflammation of the lactating breast remains a research frontier. Breast pain associated with inflammation is a common reason for premature weaning. Multiple diagnoses are used for inflammatory conditions of the lactating breast, such as engorgement, blocked ducts, phlegmon, mammary candidiasis, subacute mastitis, mastitis and white spots, which lack agreed or evidence-based aetiology, definitions and treatment. This is the first in a series of three articles which review the research literature concerning benign lactation–related breast inflammation. This article investigates aetiological models. A complex systems perspective is applied to analyse heterogeneous and interdisciplinary evidence elucidating the functional anatomy and physiology of the lactating breast; the mammary immune system, including the human milk microbiome and cellular composition; the effects of mechanical forces during lactation; and the interactions between these. This analysis gives rise to a mechanobiological model of breast inflammation, in which very high intra-alveolar and intra-ductal pressures are hypothesized to strain or rupture the tight junctions between lactocytes and ductal epithelial cells, triggering inflammatory cascades and capillary dilation. Resultant elevation of stromal tension exerts pressure on lactiferous ducts, worsening intraluminal backpressure. Rising leucocyte and epithelial cell counts in the milk and alterations in the milk microbiome are signs that the mammary immune system is recruiting mechanisms to downregulate inflammatory feedback loops. From a complex systems perspective, the key mechanism for the prevention or treatment of breast inflammation is avoidance of excessively high intra-alveolar and intra-ductal pressures, which prevents a critical mass of mechanical strain and rupture of the tight junctions between lactocytes and ductal epithelial cells.

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“…However, the mammary gland does not seem to stand alone because it is highly influenced by the antibodies produced by the mother in her own gut [90]. During the late pregnancy and lactation stage, the maternal IgA antibody-secreting cells, found in the gut and in the respiratory system, are translocated into the mammary glands [91,92]. The gut mucosal epithelial chemokine CCL28 is the key regulator of the build-up of IgA antibody-secreting cells.…”

Section: Mucosal Sampling and Migration Of Dendritic Cellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Insight into Probiotics Bio-Route: Translocation from the Mother’s Gut to the Mammary Gland

et al. 2021

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Human breast milk (HBM) is unique in its composition as it is adapted to fulfil the newborns’ nutritional requirement and helps in improving the health of newborns. Besides various nutrients, the human milk also contains diverse group of microbiotas. The human milk microbiota has a remarkable impact on the growth and development of a newborn. Additionally, the human milk microbiota enhances the colonization of microbes in the gut of infants. Debates about the origin of HBM microbial flora remain premature and contradictory in some cases. Recent data suggest that the maternal gut microbiota has a major impact on microbial composition, areolar skin, and from the infant’s oral cavity. The current review investigates the possible route of microbial transfer from the maternal gut to mammary gland and suggests that it might occur through the entero-mammary pathway. It involves precise selection of probiotic microorganisms from the gut, as the human gut hosts trillions of microorganisms involved in gut homeostasis and other metabolic pathways. Gastrointestinal lymphatic vessels, macrophages, and dendritic cells are shown to play a significant role in the microbial transmission. Furthermore, the role of microbial factors in the development of neonatal immunity and translocation of secretory IgA (SIgA) cells from the intestinal lumen to GALT and finally to mammary glands via entero-mammary link are discussed.

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The Gut‒Breast Axis: Programming Health for Life

Cited by 55 publications

References 228 publications

Allergen shedding in human milk: Could it be key for immune system education and allergy prevention?

Allergen shedding in human milk: Could it be key for immune system education and allergy prevention?

Re-thinking benign inflammation of the lactating breast: A mechanobiological model

An Insight into Probiotics Bio-Route: Translocation from the Mother’s Gut to the Mammary Gland

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