Selective transfer of maternal antibodies in preterm and fullterm children.

Preterm newborns are more likely to suffer from infectious diseases at birth compared to children delivered at term. Whether this is due to compromised cellular, humoral, or organ-specific development remains unclear. To begin to define whether maternal-fetal antibody transfer profiles differ across preterm (PT) and fullterm (FT) infants, the overall quantity and functional quality of an array of 24 vaccine-, endemic pathogen-, and common antigen-specific antibodies were assessed across a cohort of 11 PT and 12 term-delivered maternal:infant pairs from birth through week 12.

Altered Maternal Antibody Profiles in Women With Human Immunodeficiency Virus Drive Changes in Transplacental Antibody Transfer.

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-exposed, uninfected (HEU) children have a higher risk of severe infection, but the causes are poorly understood. Emerging data point to altered antibody transfer in women with HIV (WHIV); however, specific perturbations and the influence of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and HIV viremia remain unclear.

Methods: We evaluated antigen-specific transplacental antibody transfer across 14 antigens in paired maternal and umbilical cord plasma from 352 Ugandan women; 176 were WHIV taking ART.

Measles Vaccination Elicits a Polyfunctional Antibody Response, Which Decays More Rapidly in Early Vaccinated Children.

Background: Measles outbreaks are reported worldwide and pose a serious threat, especially to young unvaccinated infants. Early measles vaccination given to infants under 12 months of age can induce protective antibody levels, but the long-term antibody functionalities are unknown.

Methods: Measles-specific antibody functionality was tested using a systems serology approach for children who received an early measles vaccination at 6-8 or 9-12 months, followed by a regular dose at 14 months of age, and children who only received the vaccination at 14 months.

A Sample-Sparing Multiplexed ADCP Assay.

Antibodies serve as the primary correlate of protection following most clinically approved vaccines and are thought to confer protection in part through their ability to block (neutralize) infection. Increasingly, studies have shown that beyond their blocking activities, the ability of antibodies to leverage the innate immune response may serve a vital role in protection from infection. Specifically, antibodies can drive phagocytosis, complement activation, and cellular cytotoxicity by interacting with Fc-receptors found on all innate immune cells.

The Antibodiome-Mapping the Humoral Immune Response to HIV.

Purpose Of Review: The design of an HIV vaccine remains an elusive but top priority. Data from the non-human primate model and the first moderately protective HIV vaccine trial (RV144) point to a role for qualitative changes in humoral immune functions in protection from infection. Here, we review the current understanding of the antibody response throughout HIV infection, the known correlates of protection, and current strategies to manipulate antibodies to put an end to the epidemic.

Sex differences in vaccine-induced humoral immunity.

Vaccines are among the most impactful public health interventions, preventing millions of new infections and deaths annually worldwide. However, emerging data suggest that vaccines may not protect all populations equally. Specifically, studies analyzing variation in vaccine-induced immunity have pointed to the critical impact of genetics, the environment, nutrition, the microbiome, and sex in influencing vaccine responsiveness.