4. Evolution in the Immunoglobulin Profile during the Lactation Period: The Breast Milk Immunoglobulinome
When we study the complete set of metabolites in a cell, tissue, organ, or organism, we refer to them as metabolome; when the attention is focused on the set of expressed proteins, we call it proteome; and if we concentrate our attention on the set of all RNA transcripts, including coding and noncoding, in an individual or a population of cells, we call it transcriptome. Thus, the set of Igs present in a particular fluid or organic compartment could be referred to as immunoglobulinome. Overall, this immunoglobulinome should also be established at a given time and under defined conditions.
In line with this, breast milk is a dynamic fluid whose levels and proportions of Igs change during lactation. This characteristic profile, then, is different at each stage: colostrum, transition, and mature milk. The overall pool of Igs in breast milk includes not only IgA, but also, in lower proportions, the other Ig classes (IgM, IgG, IgE, and IgD), and more recently, the subclasses of IgG have also been studied. Overall, and taking into account the previous considerations, to refer to this particular mixture of Igs at any specific period, in this review we will use the term “breast milk (BM) immunoglobulinome”.
After considering all the articles published referring to Ig composition in breast milk using the criteria established in the Material and Methods section, the data have been compiled and organized in different tables according to the type of Ig. The tables include the critical aspects determining the Ig concentration described: type of milk (collection day or period), main population characteristics (number of samples analyzed, location, etc.), and finally, the method used for its analysis. All these factors can have an influence in the final concentration described. Studies involving colostrum were considered from d1–d5, the transition period from d6–d15, and from then on mature milk. The mean values from each study, independently of the number of samples they are derived from, have also been compiled and expressed together in Figure 4.
Figure 4. IgA (A), IgM (B), and IgG (C) levels presented in the literature throughout the different phases of breastfeeding. The mean values from each Ig were calculated and shown in the graph using the values provided in the articles for a particular group, independently of the number of samples they are derived from. Figure A takes into account both the determinations obtained from IgA studies and those that claim to measure SIgA specifically.
The levels of IgA (Figure 4A), as described in the individual studies evaluating this concentration in different stages of lactation
[58][59][60][61][62][63][64], displayed the highest values in colostrum (~7500 mg/L), with lower levels in transition and mature milk (~1600–2000 mg/L). Due to the variability among studies, no clear differences between transition and mature milk IgA content can be observed. The number of reports studying IgM content in breast milk is much lower than those evaluating IgA, and very few focused on the transition period (Figure 4B). However, a decreasing tendency in IgM content can be observed from colostrum (~600 mg/L) to transition milk (~430 mg/L) and finally to mature milk (~260 mg/L). With regard to IgG, since this is the least studied Ig in breast milk, the results shown here come from a very few studies (Figure 4C), and the overall results are influenced by particular studies with very high values (>800 mg/L). In any case, their levels amount to 180–1100 mg/L. IgE and IgD are minimal in the BM immunoglobulinome at any stage studied, and very few studies have found their presence, as will be further discussed later.
The great variability in terms of Ig concentration makes it difficult to compile results and draw conclusions; thus, their relative proportion may help to make the data more comparable among studies. However, very few studies reported all three levels of IgA, IgM, and IgG
[41][45][51][65][66]. Thus, an overall distribution of Ig proportions was calculated on the basis of the mean values obtained for all values and is shown in Figure 5.
Figure 5. Global proportions from the immunoglobulin concentrations found in the literature. Proportions of Ig classes are expressed in each stage of lactation: colostrum (A), transition (B), and mature (C) milk. IgG subclass proportions were expressed in colostrum (D) and mature milk (E), as there are no current data for transition milk in this regard.
As expected, it can be observed that IgA is the predominant Ig in the BM immunoglobulinome at any stage of lactation; however, based on our calculations, it seems that the relative proportion of IgA is higher in colostrum (~88.11%) than in transition or mature milk (~68.35–81.65%). It is interesting, though, that the lower proportion in these two last stages of lactation seems to be due to a higher proportion of IgM (~22.45–12.70% vs. ~7.87% in colostrum) in the transition and mature periods. However, these proportions, as noted before, are calculations derived from the current values found in the literature and may not reflect the real BM immunoglobulinome, which can only be derived after having real data from independent studies taking into account all types of Ig in the same sample and at different collection time points.
Aside from some old studies dating mostly from the 80s
[55][67], only in the last 10 years, and due to the use of the Luminex techniques, have the studies on the BM immunoglobulinome addressed the IgG subtypes in more depth
[41][51]. In this case, the proportion of IgG1, IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4, the main human isotypes
[31], have been described in colostrum (Figure 5D) and mature milk (Figure 5E). However, there are no available data on IgG isotypes during the transition period. Regarding their relative proportions, the IgG1 percentage is the highest, followed by IgG2, IgG3, and IgG4. This particular composition, with a predominance of the Th1 response (IgG1 + IgG2 + IgG3) over the Th2 response (IgG4), suggests the breast milk regulatory activity on the neonatal Th1/Th2 balance to minimize the Th2 environment that predominates in the intrauterine space
[38][68]. The ratio between these IgG can be of importance in observational studies evaluating the factors influencing breast milk immune composition. A certain diet or particular situations (delivery type or length of gestation period) may lead to changes in this balance that deserve to be studied in depth in the future.