Antibodies Linked to Early Attacks on Embryos

Posted By Braverman IVF & Reproductive Immunology || 18-Jun-2012

At the beginning of June, Linda Silva, our patient coordinator at Braverman IVF & Reproductive Immunology, and I attended a joint conference of the American Society for Reproductive Immunology (ASRI) and the European Society for Reproductive Immunology (ESRI) in Hamburg, Germany May 31 to June 2nd. What a great opportunity to exchange many ideas with the scientists making the latest discoveries, and to hear some of their latest news. I want to share some of that latest news with you!

  1. New study shows that the antibodies to gluten in patients with Celiac Disease may actually themselves attach to and attack the early invading embryo and is another mechanism by which Celiac Disease can lead to unexplained miscarriages.
  2. New study shows that 2/3rds of patients make anti HLA antibodies in response to paternal leukocyte treatments, but only half of those make protective antibodies. This again shows that the method of testing for "blocking" antibodies using the LAD is flawed, because it makes the assumption that the presence of "anti HLA antibodies" proven by a "positive" LAD test is indicative of the production of "blocking" antibodies as a response. If this was the case then all of the patients who made anti HLA antibodies in the above study would have made protective antibodies.
  3. Braverman IVF & Reproductive Immunology is the only center in the USA that is now testing, for not only, anti HLA antibodies, and identifying if they are against the fathers genetics, but also testing directly for the presence of "protective" or "blocking" antibodies. This will allow us to better monitor the effectiveness of any of our treatments.
  4. Studies continue to prove that B HCG injections can increase T regulator cells, and, therefore, may be helpful in immune related pregnancy loss or late pregnancy complications. In fact, in animal studies, the use of Beta HCG injections completely reversed signs of "toxemia" or "high blood pressure of pregnancy" due to the elevation of T regulator which are a result of the injections.
  5. Vitamin D may be very important in helping to overcome the inflammatory response that is initiated when a bacterial infection in the uterus stimulates special receptors called Toll-like Receptors (TLR's) on cells in the placenta. By preventing this inflammatory response we may help to prevent pre-term labor in this group of patients.

We are very excited about all this news and we'll be following it very closely going forward.

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