In a study of 960 pregnancies a significantly higher male to female birth ratio was found among primigravidae who developed HL-A antibodies, which was highest where these were monospecific. In the whole group male births predominated in women with antibodies to HL-A 1 and 11 (first locus) and HL-A 5, 12, and 13 and TYT (second locus).

A congenital rubella syndrome (Box 1) is rare in Canada, it does still occur. Many women immigrate to Canada from countries without a rubella vaccination program and may not have adequate immunity. In 2002, only 124 (58%) of 214 countries or territories around the world had implemented a rubella vaccination program. An Australian study found that women born in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and South...

BACKGROUND Maternal alloantibodies against HPA-1a can cross placenta, opsonize foetal platelets, and induce neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAIT). In a study of 100, 448 pregnant women in Norway during 1995-2004, 10.6% of HPA-1a negative women had detectable anti-HPA-1a antibodies. DESIGN AND METHODS A possible correlation between the maternal ABO blood group phenotype, or underlying ge...

Mammalian body surfaces are inhabited by vast numbers of microbes, the commensal microbiota, which help the host to digest food, provide nutrients, and mature its immune system. For a long time, postnatal colonization was believed to be the main stimulus for microbial-induced immune development. Using a model of reversible colonization of germ-free mice during gestation, we recently showed that...

BACKGROUND Avian Metapneumovirus (aMPV) infections are a huge economical issue for the poultry industry worldwide. Although maternal antibodies do not protect turkey poults against turkey rhinotracheitis (TRT), almost no studies have been conducted so far regarding the impact of these antibodies on vaccine induced immunity development against aMPV infection. We conducted four experiments on com...

BACKGROUND  The increase in the incidence of whooping cough (pertussis) in many countries with high vaccination coverage is alarming. Maternal pertussis immunization has been proposed as an effective means of protecting newborns during the interval between birth and the first routine dose. However, there are concerns regarding potential interference between maternal antibodies and the immune re...

adverse outcome of pregnancy is a potentially dangerous complication of conception and affects 15-20% of pregnancies. according to recent studies increased level of blood antiphospholipids antibodies, if accompanied by predisposing factors, can be an adverse event in human pregnancy. the aim of the present study was to compare the maternal serum levels of anticardiolipin and antiphosphatidyl se...

Immunization of pregnant women can be an efficient strategy to induce early protection in infants in developing countries. Pneumococcal protein-based vaccines may have the capacity to induce pneumococcal serotype-independent protection. To understand the potential of maternal pneumococcal protein-specific antibodies in infants in high-risk areas, we studied the placental transfer of naturally a...

Incompatibility of the human platelet antigen-1 (HPA-1) system is the most common cause of fetal/neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (F/NAIT) and is thought to be mediated by accelerated clearance of antibody-opsonized fetal platelets. We evaluated the effect of maternal sera containing anti-HPA-1a antibodies (F/NAIT sera) on in vitro megakaryopoiesis. Compared with control maternal sera, 14 o...