Antigen-specific immune responses to influenza vaccine in utero

Initial immune responses to allergens may occur before birth, thereby modulating the subsequent development of atopy. This paradigm remains controversial, however, due to the inability to identify antigen-specific T cells in cord blood. The advent of MHC tetramers has revolutionized the detection of antigen-specific T cells. Tetramer staining of cord blood after CMV infection has demonstrated that effective CD8⁺ antigen-specific immune responses can follow intrauterine viral infections. We hypothesized that sensitization to antigens occurs in utero in humans. We studied cord blood B and T cell immune responses following vaccination against influenza during pregnancy. Anti-Fluzone and anti-matrix protein IgM antibodies were detected in 38.5% (27 of 70) and 40.0% (28 of 70), respectively, of cord blood specimens. Using MHC tetramers, HA-specific CD4⁺ T cells were detected among 25.0% (3 of 12) and 42.9% (6 of 14) of cord blood specimens possessing DRB1*0101 and DRB1*0401 HLA types, respectively, and were detected even when the DRB1 HLA type was inherited from the father. Matrix protein-specific CD8⁺ T cells were detected among 10.0% (2 of 20) of HLA-A*0201⁺ newborns. These results suggest that B and T cell immune responses occur in the fetus following vaccination against influenza and have important implications for determining when immune responses to environmental exposures begin.