Dr Geula Hanin

Decoding the Molecular Basis of Lactation and Early Nutrition to Improve Maternal-Child Health

Lactation is a fundamental characteristic of mammals, providing essential nutrient-rich milk that supports infant growth and development. Beyond nutrition, within the breastmilk lies a blueprint for healthy life course trajectories and disease prevention for mothers and infants.

Breastfeeding benefits maternal health, by reducing the risks of breast and ovarian cancer, postpartum depression and by promoting mother-offspring bonding through oxytocin and dopamine release. For infants, breastmilk provides tailored nutrition, immune protection, reduces morbidity, and lowers the risk of obesity and diabetes, while also holding societal and evolutionary significance. Despite its importance, much about the mechanisms behind postnatal nutrition remains unknown.

Our research seeks to illuminate these mechanisms by studying lactation through an integrative lens. Unlike traditional studies, which often focus on cancer or human milk composition alone, our holistic approach examines the mother, offspring, and milk as an integrated system to uncover the mechanisms regulating lactation.

A significant focus of this work is on imprinted genes, which are crucial for embryonic and placental development but remain largely unexplored in relation to mammary gland function. We also explore maternal inter-organ communication involving the mammary gland, both sending and receiving signals, to better understand how lactation is coordinated at the whole-organism level.

Research aims:

1. Investigate the function of candidate imprinted genes on mammary gland development, lactation and offspring growth.
2. Study imprinted gene protein products in human breastmilk.
3. Explore maternal inter-organ communication between the mammary gland and other maternal organs, to understand how these signals influence lactation and maternal health.