Infant Viral Respiratory Infection Nasal Immune-Response Patterns and Their Association with Subsequent Childhood...

Area of Science:

• Pediatric immunology
• Respiratory viral infections
• Asthma pathogenesis

Background:

• Recurrent wheeze and asthma are linked to early-life immune changes after respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection.
• Previous studies examining nasal immune responses to RSV infection focused on individual cytokines, failing to capture the full immune profile.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify distinct nasal immune phenotypes following RSV infection in infants.
• To investigate the association between these immune phenotypes and the development of recurrent wheeze.

Main Methods:

• A birth cohort of healthy infants was recruited to capture their first RSV infection.
• Nasal wash samples were analyzed for viral identification and a comprehensive panel of immune mediators.
• Machine learning identified immune-response clusters, with logistic regression assessing their link to recurrent wheeze.

Main Results:

• Two novel immune-response clusters were identified for RSV and human rhinovirus infections.
• In RSV-infected infants, a cluster with lower antiviral mediators and higher type-2/type-17 cytokines correlated with recurrent wheeze.
• This specific immune signature was not observed in infants with human rhinovirus infections.

Conclusions:

• Distinct immune-response clusters during infant RSV infection are associated with recurrent wheeze risk.
• These findings provide crucial insights into the immunological factors and mechanisms underlying asthma development.