Salivary Secretory Leukocyte Protease Inhibitor Is Associated with Reduced Transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 through Breast Milk
Year: 2002
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI), a protein found in saliva, breast milk, and genital secretions, is capable of inhibiting human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 in vitro. The aim of this study was to determine whether SLPI in infant saliva provides protection against mother-to-child HIV-1 transmission. In total, 602 saliva specimens were collected from 188 infants at birth and at ages 1, 3, and 6 months. Infants' median salivary SLPI concentrations were higher at birth than at 6 months (341 vs. 219 ng/mL; P=.001). There was no association between SLPI concentration and HIV-1 transmission overall. However, among 122 breast-fed infants who were HIV-1 uninfected at 1 month, higher salivary SLPI levels were associated with a decreased risk of HIV-1 transmission through breast milk (hazard ratio, 0.5; 95% confidence interval, 0.3-0.9; P=.03). These results suggest that SLPI plays an important role in reducing HIV-1 transmission through breast milk.
DOI: 10.1086/343805
Language: English
Subfield: Infectious Diseases
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, University of Washington, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Fogarty International Center, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
OpenAlex ID: W2158780140