Abstract
Colostrum contains soluble and cellular components, the latter mainly T lymphocytes. We expanded in vitro colostrum T lymphocytes (CoTL) to evaluate phenotype and capability of cytokine production. We also considered paired cord blood T-lymphocytes (CBTL) representing the newborn "virgin" immune system. CoTL showed memory phenotype while CBTL expressed mainly naïve phenotype. CoTL included a balanced percentage of helper and cytotoxic subsets. We observed higher percentages of IL-2 (p=0.003) and IL-4 (p=0.027) producing cells by helper rather than by cytotoxic T lymphocytes. The greatest percentage of IFN-γ producing cells was in cytotoxic cells (p=0.0048), while no difference was found for IL-10. Cord blood samples consisted of a statistically significant greater percentage of helper than cytotoxic cells (p
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 781-786 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | International Journal of Immunopathology and Pharmacology |
Volume | 21 |
Issue number | 4 |
Publication status | Published - Oct 2008 |
Keywords
- Breastfeeding
- Lymphocytes
- Neonate
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacology
- Immunology
- Immunology and Allergy