Vaccine Maternal Antibody

About Vaccine Maternal Antibody

Maternal antibodies transferred through the placenta provide newborns with protection during their first months of life. These antibodies decline over the first months of life. Maternal antibodies can interfere with infant vaccination by neutralizing live vaccines before they stimulate an immune response. This is most relevant for measles vaccine, which national schedules typically give near the end of the first year of life in low transmission settings, after maternal antibodies have declined. In areas with high measles transmission, schedules give it earlier, accepting somewhat reduced efficacy. Maternal antibody interference is less significant for inactivated vaccines. Interestingly, mothers immune through vaccination rather than natural infection pass on lower antibody levels, which wane sooner and can leave infants vulnerable earlier. This has implications for measles elimination strategies. Some researchers suggest that maternal vaccination against RSV may similarly interfere with future infant RSV vaccination, though the clinical significance is unknown.