5 ms·
Do babies inherit the developed immune systems of their parents? If not, how do the gained resistances from survivors pass on to the next generation?
by lawrenceyan 7y ago
Do babies inherit the developed immune systems of their parents? If not, how do the gained resistances from survivors pass on to the next generation?
- toss1 7y agoI've read that breastfeeding helps transmit some key factors to help build the child's immune system, but I don't remember the details and would like to see an answer from an expert in the area
- hcknwscommenter 7y agoBreastfeeding largely does two things: i) it transmits antibodies from mom to child, the maternal antibodies circulate for a while and so the mom's immune protection is temporarily conferred; ii) it contains potential antigens like peanuts, cow milk, basically anything the mom eats and so it tolerizes the infant's own immune system from common food antigens. There are leukocytes, neutrophils etc. in breast milk, but it is unlikely that they get through the gut lining into the infant.
- joshmarlow 7y agoI believe there is some heritability. What's more, long term human couples tend to have dissimilar immune systems [0], allowing their offspring to have a more diverse spread of immunities. The fact that humans are somehow able to _detect_ properties of a potential partner's immune system is super interesting to think about. [0] - https://www.amazon.com/Social-Animal-Sources-Character-Achievement/dp/0812979370 https://www.amazon.com/Social-Animal-Sources-Character-Achie...
- wahern 7y agoWikipedia links for disassortative immunological mating: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_histocompatibility_complex_and_sexual_selection#In_humans https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_histocompatibility_compl... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_matchmaking https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_matchmaking
- joshmarlow 7y agoI did not know the name for this - thanks for sharing!
- asdfasgasdgasdg 7y agoOver the long run, natural selection is part of it. If a virus kills prevents reproduction through any mechanism, then resistance to the virus will be selected.
- qqqqquinnnnn 7y agoyeah that's an interesting point - resistance can have something to do with simply not having the right receptor on your cell surfaces and little to do with your immune system
- asdfasgasdgasdg 7y agoWell, you can select a more efficient immune system too. I wouldn't say it's one thing and not the other.
- qqqqquinnnnn 7y agointerestingly, a more effective immune system can often be a bad thing. have you heard about "cytokine storms" as a mechanism for why the mortality rate is much higher is certain groups? that's the immune system eating the host, basically
- asdfasgasdgasdg 7y agoI don't think there is consensus that this is the main problem with this virus. Cytokine storms have been cited as the cause of death when a virus disproportionately strikes folks in their 20s and 30s when the immune system is strongest. On balance tho a stronger immune system seems to be better.
- qqqqquinnnnn 7y agoThey do! but how much, how long it is active for, and how effective it is are not yet clear to me. I'll do an article on it in the near future... after I'm done figuring out what the hell is going on in the virus world