Abstract
Human colostrum (HC) is a rich source of immune mediators that play a role in immune defences of a newly born infant. The mediators include transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) which exists in three isoforms that regulate cellular homeostasis and inflammation, can induce or suppress immune responses, limit T helper 1 cells (Th1) reactions and stimulate secretory immunoglobulin A (IgA) production. Human milk TGF-β also decreases apoptosis of intestinal cells and suppresses macrophage cytokine expression. The aim of the study was to determine the concentration of TGF-β2 in HC obtained from the mothers who delivered vaginally (VD) or by caesarean section (CS), and to compare the concentrations in HC from mothers who delivered at term (TB) or preterm (PB). In this study, 56% of preterm pregnancies were delivered via CS. The concentrations of TGF-β2 were measured in HC from 299 women who delivered in the 1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical University of Warsaw: 192 (VD), 107 (CS), 251 (TB), and 48 (PB). The colostrum samples were collected within 5 days post-partum. TGF-β2 levels in HC were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test with the Quantikine ELISA Kit-Human TGF-β2 (cat.no. SB250). Statistical significance between groups was calculated by the Student t-test using StatSoft Statistica 13 software. The mean TGF-β2 concentration in patients who delivered at term or preterm were comparable. The levels of TGF-β2 in HC were higher after preterm than term being 4648 vs. 3899 ng/mL (p = 0.1244). The delivery via CS was associated with higher HC concentrations of TGF-β2. The levels of TGF-β2 were significantly higher in HC after CS than VD (7429 vs. 5240 ng/mL; p = 0.0017). The data from this study suggest: caesarean section was associated with increased levels of TGF-β2 in HC. The increased levels of TGF-β2 in HC of women who delivered prematurely require further research. Early and exclusive breast-feeding by mothers after caesarean section and premature births with colostrum containing high TGF-β2 levels may prevent the negative impact of pathogens which often colonize the gastrointestinal tract and may reduce the risk of chronic diseases in this group of patients.
Highlights
The correlation between breastfeeding and the health of the newborn as well as predispositions to infectious diseases, allergic or autoimmune health is an issue which has been mentioned in many cultures for thousands of years [1,2]
The aim of our study was to determine the concentration of TGF-β2 in Human colostrum (HC)
Our results show that the concentrations of TGF-β2 differed in the case of each of those variables
Summary
The correlation between breastfeeding and the health of the newborn as well as predispositions to infectious diseases, allergic or autoimmune health is an issue which has been mentioned in many cultures for thousands of years [1,2]. It was reported that breastfeeding can reduce asthma prevalence in children, but its correlation with allergic diseases still remains unclear [9]. Those studies confirm the immunomodulatory and protective function of human milk and the importance of breastfeeding. The composition of human milk (HM) changes with the phase of lactation. It may be different depending on maternal origin [10]. We differentiate three types of HM: colostrum, transitional milk, and mature milk
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