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Developmental factors as determinants of risk for infections and atopy in childhood

CORRESPONDENCE: P. G. Holt, Division of Cell Biology, Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, PO Box 855, West Perth WA 6872, Australia. Fax: 61 894897707. E-mail: patrick{at}ichr.uwa.edu.au

The nature of the relationship between infections and allergy in children continues to be the subject of vigorous debate, in particular the issue of whether the increased frequency of wheezing respiratory infections in children is a cause or a consequence of atopy.

Recent evidence suggests a subtle twist to this argument, notably that the genetic risk for susceptibility to both atopy and respiratory infections may involve a common set of genetic variations related to the efficiency of maturation of immune function in early post-natal life.

KEYWORDS: Asthma, atopy, cytokines, infancy, T-cells