The Neo-ICog study: Exploring immunology and coagulation in preterm infants and their impact on health and disease using omics approaches

Worldwide over 15 million infants are born prematurely each year. Despite significant improvements in infant survival rates, complications from preterm birth remain the leading cause of neonatal death. This thesis examined the immune and coagulation systems of preterm infants to better understand the mechanisms underpinning diseases associated with prematurity. Of note, we demonstrated that intra-uterine inflammation was associated with an altered, Type-2 skewed, immune response in preterm infants. Importantly, we also discovered that in preterm infants the coagulation system matures in distinct patterns; and preterm birth is not associated with a clear-cut ‘deficiency’ in the coagulation system as once thought.