Early nutrition and the development of immune function in the neonate

Kelly, Denise; Coutts, A. G. P.

doi:10.1017/s0029665100000197

Cited by 172 publications

(130 citation statements)

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“…The fat ewes were characterized by higher placental and fetal weights, and there was a trend (P < 0.07) for these two parameters to be correlated. A similar positive relationship between fetal and placental weights has been documented in previous studies (sheep : Kelly, 1992;Gadd et al, 2000a;humans: Schubring et al, 1997). The body mass index, a measure of maternal fatness (weight/height 2 ), was positively correlated with placental and fetal weight in women (Perry et al, 1995), and Kinare et al (2000) also reported a relationship between the pre-pregnancy weight of the mother and the placental volume in mid-gestation.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Effect of maternal body condition on placental and fetal growth and the insulin-like growth factor axis in Dorset ewes

Osgerby¹

2003

Reproduction

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This study investigated the effects of maternal body condition on fetal growth. Fetal and placental parameters from Dorset ewes of body condition score 2.0 (lean, n = 5), 3.5 (moderate, n = 7) and 5.0 (fat, n = 4) at mating were studied on day 65 of gestation. The fetal weight and fetal weight:crown-rump length ratio were greater in fat ewes than in ewes of moderate condition. The raised total and mean placentome weight in fat ewes compared with ewes of moderate condition may have contributed to their increased fetal growth. However, the fetal crown-rump length was not affected. With in situ hybridization, insulinlike growth factor II (IGF-II) mRNA and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 2 (IGFBP-2), -3 and -6 were all detected in the placentome capsule; IGF-II mRNA was also found in the mesoderm of the fetal villi and IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-6 were present in the caruncular stroma of the maternal villi. Ewes of moderate condition, which had the smallest placentae, had the greatest placental expression of IGF-II, IGFBP-2 and IGFBP-3. In the intercotyledonary endometrium, IGFBP-3, IGFBP-5 and uterine milk protein (UTMP) mRNA were all expressed in the glandular epithelium. IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5 absorbance values were lowest in the lean ewes, whereas UTMP values were highest. Maternal insulin concentrations were greater in fat ewes, whereas plasma glucose and IGF-I concentrations in the fetal compartment were lowest in fat ewes. Therefore, in obese ewes, fetal and placental growth is increased in mid-gestation in association with higher maternal insulin concentrations and lower expression of IGFBPs in the maternal placentomes. Placental and fetal development in lean ewes may be promoted by reduced IGFBP expression in the placentomes and enhanced UTMP production by the endometrial glands. The ewes of moderate condition had the smallest fetuses and placentae coupled with the highest placental expression of IGF-II and IGFBPs.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 85%

Effect of maternal body condition on placental and fetal growth and the insulin-like growth factor axis in Dorset ewes

Osgerby¹

2003

Reproduction

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“…Our data show that from the 3rd d of life breast-fed newborns had a TI significantly greater than those of the newborns in the other two groups. We speculated that this could be due to the effect of the components of the colostrums in breast milk that have stimulant effects on the immune system (19). We have no other explanation for this finding.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Effect of a Fermented Formula on Thymus Size and Stool pH in Healthy Term Infants

et al. 2007

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ABSTRACT:To investigate the effects of fermented formula (FF) with Bifidobacterium breve C50 and Streptococcus thermophilus 065 on thymus size and stool pH of healthy term infants, ultrasound examinations and evaluations of thymus sizes and thymus indices (TI) and measurements of stool pH were performed in the same 90 term neonates on the 3rd d of life and on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th mo of life. Thirty newborns were exclusively breast-fed while the remaining 60 were randomly assigned to receive either a FF or a standard formula (SF). The fecal pH of the breast-fed group was lower than the SF group (p Ͻ 0.05), although it was similar to that of the FF group on the third postnatal day, persisting for the entire 4 mo of the study. The difference in TI was statistically significant over repeated measurements among the groups. The FF infants showed a TI similar to the breast-fed newborns. Probiotic fermentation products have effects comparable to those of the bacteria composing the intestinal microflora supporting the idea that intestinal bacterial balance plays an important role in improving host immune responses. T he principal components of human milk modulating immune responses are immunoglobulin immune cells -macrophages, neutrophils, and lymphocytes -and humoral factors -lactoferrin, lysozyme , and hormones (1,2) that interact with the intestinal microflora during postnatal breast-feeding. The stool microflora of the breast-fed infant is predominantly composed of bifid-bacteria (3). The thymus provides the environment for T lymphocyte maturation. Sonographic studies show that the thymus grows until 8 mo of age decreasing to a stable size around 12 mo of age (4,5). Thymus size is dependent on whether the infant is breast-fed; the thymus size of breast-fed infants is twice the size of formula-fed infants at 4 mo of age (6). Now it is clearly known that infant feeding can modify the balance of intestinal flora and thus influence local and general immune response. One way to achieve this is using fermented formula, or formula containing probiotics or prebiotics (7,8). These products have been shown to have an effect on intestinal homeostasis and intestinal inflammation (9) and have been used to prevent and treat acute diarrhea. A new infant formula fermented with Bifidobacterium breve C50 and Streptococcus thermophilus 065 (FF) has been developed. These particular lactic-acid producing bacteria were selected because in vitro -in animal and human studies -they have been shown to have an effect on immune response and exert antiinflammatory effects on gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) (10,11). We hypothesized that fermented formula would result in a higher thymus index (TI) and a lower fecal pH over the first 4 months after birth mimicking the effects of breast milk. MATERIALS AND METHODSInclusion and exclusion criteria. Over a period of 6 mo, healthy newborns born at the Department of Neonatology of the University of Bari were considered eligible to be included in the study. Newborns were selected on the basi...

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“…The concept of critical periods was first developed to describe acquisition of behaviours and social skills (Scott 1962) and is applied now throughout developmental biology and epigenetics in the study of environmental influences on phenotype. For instance, a critical period is seen in the immune system where stimulation during early postnatal life develops immune capabilities and influences response characteristics expressed in later life (Kelly and Coutts 2000) that influence metabolic profiles and disease susceptibility (Tilg and Kaser 2011). The function of sense organs is adapted to an optimal range of stimulus intensity and either too low or too high a rate of stimulation of some types of sensors can have adverse effects for the animal (Wiesel 1982).…”

Section: Processing Environmental Stimulimentioning

confidence: 99%

Resilience in farm animals: biology, management, breeding and implications for animal welfare

2016

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Abstract.A capacity for the animal to recover quickly from the impact of physical and social stressors and disease challenges is likely to improve evolutionary fitness of wild species and welfare and performance of farm animals. Salience and valence of stimuli sensed through neurosensors, chemosensors and immunosensors are perceived and integrated centrally to generate emotions and engage physiological, behavioural, immune, cognitive and morphological responses that defend against noxious challenges. These responses can be refined through experience to provide anticipatory and learned reactions at lower cost than innate less-specific reactions. Influences of behaviour type, coping style, and affective state and the relationships between immune responsiveness, disease resistance and resilience are reviewed. We define resilience as the capacity of animals to cope with short-term perturbations in their environment and return rapidly to their pre-challenge status. It is manifested in response to episodic, sporadic or situation-specific attributes of the environment and can be optimised via facultative learning by the individual. It is a comparative measure of differences between individuals in the outcomes that follow exposure to potentially adverse situations. In contrast, robustness is the capacity to maintain productivity in a wide range of environments without compromising reproduction, health and wellbeing. Robustness is manifested in response to persistent or cyclical attributes of the environment and is effected via activity of innate regulatory pathways. We suggest that for farm animals, husbandry practices that incorporate physical and social stressors and interactions with humans such as weaning, change of housing, and introduction to the milking parlour can be used to characterise resilience phenotypes. In these settings, resilience is likely to be more readily identified through the rate of return of variables to pre-challenge or normal status rather than through measuring the activity of diverse stress response and adaptation mechanisms. Our strategy for phenotyping resilience of sheep and cattle during weaning is described. Opportunities are examined to increase resilience through genetic selection and through improved management practices that provide emotional and cognitive enrichment and stress inoculation.Additional keywords: affective state, allostasis, animal behaviour, animal temperament, animal welfare, disease resistance, genetic selection, homeostasis, resilience, robustness, stress inoculation.

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Early nutrition and the development of immune function in the neonate

Cited by 172 publications

References 55 publications

Effect of maternal body condition on placental and fetal growth and the insulin-like growth factor axis in Dorset ewes

Effect of maternal body condition on placental and fetal growth and the insulin-like growth factor axis in Dorset ewes

Effect of a Fermented Formula on Thymus Size and Stool pH in Healthy Term Infants

Resilience in farm animals: biology, management, breeding and implications for animal welfare

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