Title: Breast milk-derived extracellular vesicle miRNAs are associated with maternal asthma and atopy.

Authors: Bozack, Anne K; Colicino, Elena; Rodosthenous, Rodosthenis S; Bloomquist, Tessa R; Baccarelli, Andrea A; Wright, Robert O; Wright, Rosalind J; Lee, Alison G

Published In Epigenomics, (2022 Jun)

Abstract: Background: Breast milk-derived extracellular vesicle (EV) miRNAs may program child health outcomes associated with maternal asthma and atopy. The authors investigated associations between maternal asthma/atopy and EV miRNAs in the Programming of Intergenerational Stress Mechanisms cohort. Methods: Breast milk-derived EV miRNAs collected 6.1 ± 5.9 weeks postnatally (n = 80 mothers) were profiled using the TaqMan OpenArray Human MicroRNA Panel. The authors assessed associations using adjusted robust regression. Results: Nine EV miRNAs were associated with asthma during pregnancy (a priori criteria: nominal p < 0.05; |Bregression| >0.2). miR-1290 was associated with asthma and atopy during pregnancy (p < 0.05; |Bregression| >0.2). Enriched Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathways included TGF-β signaling and extracellular matrix-receptor interaction (false discovery rate <0.05). Conclusion: In this study, maternal asthma and atopy were associated with breast milk-derived EV miRNAs. Additional studies are needed to understand whether EV miRNAs have direct effects on infant and child health.

PubMed ID: 35638388

MeSH Terms: Asthma*/genetics; Asthma*/metabolism; Extracellular Vesicles*/genetics; Extracellular Vesicles*/metabolism; Female; Humans; Infant; MicroRNAs*/genetics; MicroRNAs*/metabolism; Milk, Human/metabolism; Mothers; Pregnancy