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Written By: Agencies | Published : September 22, 2014 10:58 PM IST
As per a recent study, scientists have found that new born babies have a stronger immune system that what was believed earlier. The study conducted by King's College London proved that the immune cells (T cells) of the newborn have the ability to trigger an inflammatory response to bacteria. Although, the immune system of kids work differently than that of adults, children still have a strong defence mechanism to fight against infection. The study reports were quite contradictory to the belief that babies have an immature immune system that failed to trigger the same inflammatory response as that normally seen in adults.
Although babies need to protect themselves from the harmful pathogens they are exposed to from birth, it was thought that their T cells were suppressed to some extent to prevent inflammatory damage to the developing child. However, the team discovered that whilst T cells in newborn babies were largely different to those in adults, it wasn't because they are immune-suppressed; rather, they manufactured a potent anti-bacterial molecule known as IL8 that hadn't previously been considered a major product of T cells, and that activated neutrophils to attack the body's foreign invaders.
The T cell activity could become a target for future treatments aimed at boosting the immune system of neonates in intensive care, where infection was a major risk for morbidity and mortality. Premature babies are also at serious risk of developing inflammatory diseases such as necrotising enterocolitis (NEC), where severe inflammation destroys tissues in the gut. NEC is the most common gastrointestinal surgical emergency in preterm babies, with mortality rates of around 15 to 30 per cent in the UK. The study is published in the journal Nature Medicine.
Source: ANI
Image Source: Getty images
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