Correlation between peripheral blood Treg/Th17, related cytokines and intestinal microbiota in children with cows milk protein allergy

Corresponding author: haowenying

DOI: 10.12201/bmr.202512.00020

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  Abstract: Objective To explore the correlation between the distribution of regulatory T cell (Treg)/help T cell 17 (Th17) and related cytokines interleukin-17 (IL-17), interleukin-10 (IL-10), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in peripheral blood and the gut microbiota in infants with cow’s milk protein allergy (CMPA). Methods One hundred children aged 1~6 months diagnosed with mild-to-moderate CMPA at the outpatient clinic of Women and Children’s Hospital of Ningbo University from January 2022 to October 2024 were selected as the case group. One hundred healthy infants aged 1~6 months during the same period served as the control group. Peripheral venous blood was randomly collected from 30 subjects in each group for flow cytometric analysis of the frequency of Treg and Th17 among peripheral blood lymphocytes and for ELISA detection of serum levels of IL-17, IL-10, and TGF-β1. Fecal specimens were obtained, with high-throughput sequencing techniques adopted for the analysis of intestinal microbial community composition. Results Compared with the control group, the frequencies of Th17 and IL-17 in the peripheral blood of the case group were significantly elevated (P＜0.05), while the frequency of Treg was significantly reduced (P＜0.05). There were no statistically significant differences in serum IL-10 and TGF-β1 levels between the two groups (P＞0.05). After treatment, the frequencies of Th17 and IL-17 in the case group were significantly lower than those before treatment (P＜0.05), but no significant changes were observed in the frequencies of Treg, serum IL-10, or TGF-β1 levels (P＞0.05). Additionally, the fecal levels of Lactobacillus and Enterococcus in the case group were significantly higher than those before treatment (P＜0.001), while the level of yeast-like fungi was significantly lower (P＜0.001). Conclusion Infants with CMPA exhibit an imbalance in the Treg/Th17 ratio, increased serum IL-17 level, and altered intestinal flora structure. These results suggest that immune regulatory cells and intestinal microecology are jointly involved in the pathogenesis of CMPA.

  Key words: Cow’s milk protein allergy; Treg; Th17; Cytokines; Gut microbiota

  Submit time: 9 December 2025

  Copyright: The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted biomedRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity.
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