[Cow milk-specific humoral and cellular immune response in infants with high risk of atopy under feeding a whey hydrolysate infant formula].
BACKGROUND
Hypoallergenic infant formulas (HAF) were developed for atopy prevention in infants with high risk of atopy if these cannot be breastfed. HAF mount an antigen-specific immune response in infants. The aim of the study was to analyse the immune response in infants fed with a new infant formula based on a whey hydrolysate (HAF) and to compare it with that of exclusively breastfed controls.


METHODS
Plasma concentrations of cow milk-specific IgE were analysed in 94 infants with high risk of atopy, 44 were exclusively breastfed, 50 were fed with HAF. In addition, cow milk-specific IgG antibodies (26 breastfed, 30 fed with HAF) as well as proliferation of periph-eral blood mononuclear cells to bovine beta-lactoglobulin (BLG) (41 breastfed, 47 fed with HAF) were tested. Specific IgE and IgG antibodies were determined using enzymoimmunometric assay (Alastat). Cellular proliferation was measured using tritiated thymidine incorporation assay after 6 day stimulation with BLG.


RESULTS
Elevated IgE to cow milk antibodies (> 0.35 kU/L) were detected in two infants from the breastfed group and in one from the HAF-fed group. The plasma concentrations of milk specific IgG antibodies in HAF-fed infants were insignificantly higher than those in breastfed ones. No significant difference was found in bovine BLG-specific cell proliferation between both groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Concerning the properties investigated like antigenicity, allergenicity and immunogenicity, the extensively hydrolysed whey based hypoallergenic formula does not significantly differ from mother milk in 6 month-old infants with an increased atopy risk.
Nentwich
I
I
Institut der klinischen Immunologie und Allergologie, Masaryk-Universität in Brünn, Tschechien. inentw@med.muni.cz
Pazdírková
A
A
Koberská
I
I
Pokojská
E
E
Szépfalusi
Z
Z
Lokaj
J
J
D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002417:Cattle; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000032:analysis; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000032:analysis; D007223:Infant; D041943:Infant Formula; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007782:Lactoglobulins / Q000276:immunology; D008892:Milk / Q000276:immunology*; D016269:Milk Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012307:Risk Factors
D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007782:Lactoglobulins; D007073:Immunoglobulin E