@article{be27eb6d2af942ab8eb0b6cbdca2e84d,
title = "Characterizing the pregnancy immune phenotype: Results of the viral immunity and pregnancy (VIP) study",
abstract = "Purpose The increased risk of morbidity and mortality from certain microbial infections and the demonstrated improvements in the clinical course of some autoimmune diseases support the existence of pregnancy-related alterations in immune status. Elucidating the changes in innate and adaptive immunity during gestation may improve pregnancy outcomes and facilitate the development of targeted therapies for autoimmune diseases. Method The Viral Immunity and Pregnancy (VIP) study evaluated over 50 subjects longitudinally at three time points during pregnancy and at two time points post-delivery. Leukocyte enumeration was performed; functional responses of NK cells and CD4 T cells were analyzed, and soluble factors such as cytokines, defensins, and steroid hormones were measured in maternal blood. Results In comparison to the post-partum period, the latter part of pregnancy was characterized by significant increases in blood phagocytes and pDCs and decreases in the number and activity of NK and T cells. Alterations were found in antimicrobial proteins and serum cytokines. Conclusions These data show that pregnancy is not a period of immunosuppression but an alteration in immune priorities characterized by a strengthening of innate immune barriers and a concomitant reduction in adaptive/inflammatory immunity in the later stages of pregnancy.",
keywords = "Cytokines, Gestation, Immunity, Influenza, Pregnancy, Th2",
author = "Kraus, {Thomas A.} and Engel, {Stephanie M.} and Sperling, {Rhoda S.} and Lisa Kellerman and Yungtai Lo and Sylvan Wallenstein and Escribese, {Maria M.} and Garrido, {Jose L.} and Tricia Singh and Martine Loubeau and Moran, {Thomas M.}",
note = "Funding Information: The Viral Immunity in Pregnancy (VIP) project was funded by a NIH-NIAID contract (Immune Responses to Virus Infections During Pregnancy; Contact No. HHSN266200 500028C) and enrolled pregnant women into two different prospective, observational, longitudinal cohorts: a vaccine cohort, which assessed immunological responses during pregnancy to inactivated influenza vaccine (Sperling et al. manuscript in press); and also, an immune response cohort. The aim of the immune-response cohort, the subject of this current paper, was to examine whether the different trimesters of pregnancy, characterized by unique hormonal environments, are associated with identifiable and discrete changes in maternal innate and adaptive immunity. Both cohorts were approved by the Mount Sinai School of Medicine Program for the Protection of Human Subjects/Institutional Review Board. Study recruitment started in 2006 and continued until 2010. Funding Information: Funding This work was supported by the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases—Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation of the National Institutes of Health [grant number N01-AI-50028]. The funding source had no role in study design, collection, or interpretation of data.",
year = "2012",
month = apr,
doi = "10.1007/s10875-011-9627-2",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "32",
pages = "300--311",
journal = "Journal of Clinical Immunology",
issn = "0271-9142",
publisher = "Springer New York",
number = "2",
}