Fuente: "milk OR dairy products" iScience. 2026 Mar 30;29(4):115520. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2026.115520. eCollection 2026 Apr 17.ABSTRACTBreastfeeding shapes early life immunity, but without antiretroviral therapy (ART), it poses a risk of HIV transmission. The contribution of breast milk antibodies to this risk remains unclear. Using systems serology, we profiled milk antibodies from transmitting and non-transmitting mothers in the ART naive Zambia Exclusive Breastfeeding Study. Transmission was associated with elevated gp41-specific IgG1 and enhanced effector functions-including complement deposition and neutrophil phagocytosis-likely driven by higher milk viral loads. In contrast, non-transmitting mothers exhibited functional p24-specific antibody responses that correlated with lower milk viral loads, suggesting improved viral control. Fc glycosylation analysis showed that transmitting mothers had higher levels of digalactosylated IgG, a profile linked to increased neutrophil inflammatory cytokine release. Overall, these data indicate that milk antibodies have multifaceted roles in postnatal HIV transmission and identify immune signatures associated with increased risk or protection, providing mechanistic insights relevant for vaccine development and Fc-engineered antibody-based prevention strategies.PMID:42006329 | PMC:PMC13091459 | DOI:10.1016/j.isci.2026.115520