"Perinatal microbial exposure and the shaping of the early immune system: lessons from experimental models"

The perinatal period is critical for immune development, yet the factors that coordinate healthy immune development are ill-defined. One barrier to advancement is the lack of animal models that faithfully recapitulate human immunology. Conventional mouse models are raised with unnaturally low microbial burdens, resulting in underdeveloped immune systems relative to humans. To overcome this limitation, researchers have begun to modulate microbial exposure, with the shared observation that diverse microbial exposure is critical for developing robust immune systems. In this review, we explore the different approaches to microbial exposure and their potential for advancing the fields of perinatal and pregnancy immunology.