Skip to main content
Fig. 2 | Journal of Translational Medicine

Fig. 2

From: Exosomes of pasteurized milk: potential pathogens of Western diseases

Fig. 2

Milk exosomes and allergy prevention. Human breast milk and dairy milk exosomes transfer miR-148a and miR-29b, which both suppress DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1). DNMT1 controls the methylation status of the Treg-specific demethylation region (TSDR) on the FOXP3 promoter. DNMT1 suppression (TSDR hypomethylation) increases FoxP3 expression. Milk exosome-derived miR-155 inhibits suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1), a negative regulator of the JAK-STAT pathway that increases the expression of signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5) promoting FoxP3 expression. Milk exosome-derived transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) enhances SMAD5 signaling that further increases FoxP3 expression, especially in the thymus. Milk exosomes thus promote the induction of FoxP3, the master transcription factor of regulatory T cells (Tregs), the potential mechanism preventing allergy development by breast feeding or raw farm milk consumption during early infancy

Back to article page