# Infant Protection from Influenza through Maternal Influenza Immunization

> **NIH NIH K23** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2021 · $174,993

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Influenza affects over 15 million infants each year worldwide resulting in approximately 400,000 severe cases
and 10,000 deaths annually. Maternal influenza immunization (MII) during pregnancy protects infants against
disease, presenting tremendous opportunity to reduce morbidity and mortality. Protection occurs through three
mechanisms: decreased infant exposure to maternal infections, transplacental vaccine-specific antibody (Ab),
and possibly breastmilk vaccine-specific Ab. Yet, there are critical gaps in our understanding of MII including
optimal timing of immunization, defined correlates of Ab protection in infants, and the importance of vaccine Ab
in breastmilk. The overarching goal of this research is to address these gaps by investigating the
epidemiologic and immunologic protection provided to infants against influenza through immunization during
pregnancy with a focus on breastmilk-mediated protection. Utilizing a retrospective cohort of 49,000 mother-
infant pairs at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Aim 1a will examine the individual and
combined associations between infant exposure to MII and breastmilk and risk of infant influenza to determine
if the combination of MII and breastmilk results in synergistic protection against influenza. Aim 1b will use this
cohort to determine whether the timing of MII during pregnancy affects the likelihood of infant influenza
occurrence, while controlling for consumption of breastmilk. Aim 2 will use an infant influenza case/control
study design to determine the influenza-vaccine specific Ab titer in serum (Aim 2a) and breastmilk (Aim 2b)
that correlates with protection against influenza. Cases and controls will be identified among approximately 440
mother-infant pairs who will be recruited from the New Vaccine Surveillance Network (NVSN) study at UPMC
over four consecutive influenza seasons with specimens collected. NVSN is a Center for Disease Control and
Prevention study of children with acute respiratory illness and asymptomatic controls. Accomplishment of these
aims will significantly improve our understanding of the protection provided to infants through maternal
influenza immunization and significantly expand our understanding of vaccine-Ab in breastmilk, setting the
stage for future interventions to protect this vulnerable population. With guidance from committed mentors and
strong institutional support, the PI will also receive the necessary intensive mentorship, didactic education, and
research experience to become an independent investigator, supporting career development objectives in
advanced quantitative methods, leadership in team science, hands-on experience in human subjects’ research
and laboratory training in infectious diseases and immunology. This work will provide essential preliminary data
to support future grant applications with a continued focus in infant protection through maternal vaccines. With
these new skills and novel preliminar...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10191145
- **Project number:** 1K23AI159399-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Anne-Marie Rick
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $174,993
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-06-01 → 2026-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10191145

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10191145, Infant Protection from Influenza through Maternal Influenza Immunization (1K23AI159399-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10191145. Licensed CC0.

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