Longitudinal maternal and early life (neuro)immune mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental and behavioural impairments in HIV-exposed uninfected children in a South African birth cohort

Up to 30% of births are HIV-exposed uninfected (HEU) children in high HIV burden countries. HEU children present poorer educational performance than their unexposed counterparts. The first five years are critical for the developing brain and biological processes that contribute to neurodevelopmental delays in HEU children is largely unknown. Recent findings from my research and from others suggest that an abnormal immune regulation in early life potentially play an important role in delayed cognitive abilities of HEU children. My project will evaluate the mechanism of a longitudinal immune regulation in pregnant mothers and their children through to 6-years in the brain development of HEU children compared to their HIV-unexposed counterparts. I will conduct this research with state-of-the-art techniques, including neuroimaging, in well-characterized South African birth cohort. The outcomes from this project holds promise to identify biological processes that can predict HEU children whom are at risk of impaired brain development.