Question

Discuss the mechanism behind the mother's ability to pass along her immunoglobulins to a breast-feeding infant

Answer 1

Ans) Secretory Immunoglobulin A (IgA) is a special immunoglobulin which is the main antibody in breast milk. Infants have low levels of IgA.

- So, as the weeks and months go on, a baby's immune system makes more IgA and the levels slowly rise. But, when a baby breastfeeds during this early period of life, he gets high levels of IgA from breast milk.

Apart from IgA also IgG is transferred from mother to infants.

- IgG Placental Transfer Is Mediated by FcRn. In humans, substances that pass from maternal blood to fetal blood must traverse the histological barrier consistings of two cell layers: the multinucleated syncytiotrophoblasts (STBs) and endothelial cells of the fetal capillaries.