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Maternal diet modulates the infant microbiome and intestinal Flt3L necessary for dendritic cell development and immunity to respiratory infectionPoor maternal diet during pregnancy is a risk factor for severe lower respiratory infections in the offspring, but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we demonstrate that in mice a maternal low-fiber diet led to enhanced LRI severity in infants because of delayed plasmacytoid dendritic cell recruitment and perturbation of regulatory T cell expansion in the lungs.
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Association between pertussis vaccination in infancy and childhood asthma: A population-based record linkage cohort studyAsthma is among the commonest noncommunicable diseases of childhood and often occurs with other atopic comorbidities. A previous case-control study found evidence that compared to children who received acellular pertussis (aP) vaccines in early infancy, children who received one or more doses of whole-cell pertussis (wP) vaccine had lower risk of developing IgE-mediated food allergy. We hypothesized that wP vaccination in early infancy might protect against atopic asthma in childhood.
The Airway Epithelial Research Team is investigating the role of the epithelium in the development of airway diseases including asthma, cystic fibrosis and lung transplant rejection.
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Innate Immune Training for Prevention of Recurrent Wheeze in Early ChildhoodPat Deborah Holt Strickland PhD, DSc, FRCPath, FRCPI, FAA PhD Emeritus Honorary Researcher Head, Pregnancy and Early Life Immunology Patrick.Holt@
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Mechanisms of IgE sensitizationThis project investigates how cells of the immune system respond to substances to cause allergies to help develop new treatments.
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The cellular effects of estrogen on allergic asthmaThe study aims to identify the mechanism for this so that this knowledge can be used to better treat asthma and allergies in both males and females.
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Targeting the mucosal immune system in a pregnant mouse model to prevent experimental allergic airways disease in the offspringStudies in Europe show exposure of pregnant women to high levels of microbial products stimulate immune function maturation in their offspring
News & Events
My child is wheezing – what should I do?Almost 50 per cent of preschool children will experience at least one episode of wheeze, a whistling sound produced by the airways during breathing.
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Defective respiratory tract immune surveillance in asthma : A primary causal factor in disease onset and progressionThe relative importance of respiratory viral infections vs inhalant allergy in asthma pathogenesis is the subject of ongoing debate.
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Consensus communication on early peanut introduction and the prevention of peanut allergy in high-risk infantsThe purpose of this article is to highlight emerging evidence for existing allergy prevention guidelines regarding potential benefits of supporting early...