Influence of nutrition on the development of the neonatal immune system

The food intake of the mother during gestation and the breastfeeding period has far-reaching consequences for the development of the child and their immune system. While overnutrition can lead to high levels of pro-inflammatory mediators, the lack of essential micronutrients can lead to impaired immune responses during infection. In this project in collaboration with the Bertram Lab, mice are fed 10-15 diets during the lactation period and diets tested for their impact on the development of the immune system in neonates and into the adulthood. Past research has commonly used a “one diet at a time” approach, but the newly developed multi-diet geometric framework of nutrition (GFN) approach allows to determine the individual and interactive effects of different macronutrients on development and growth. Thus, the generated data set from thymus and spleen tissues will be able drill down into so far overlooked patterns in the link between diet and immune system development. Understanding the ideal nutritional composition during the early neonatal development of the immune system will be highly consequential for the individual well into the adulthood. Knowledge will be gained on how to steer the immune system towards optimal infection and cancer control while avoiding autoimmune downsides of an overactive immunity.