title: Effects of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) treatment in vivo on thymocyte functions in mice after activation in vitro.
abstract: Thymocytes from 15-day old C57BL/6 mice, pretreated with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) 4 days before sacrifice, showed an earlier response and a higher maximal cell proliferation than thymocytes from control mice upon stimulation by concanavalin A in vitro. This is partly in contrast to the conclusions from earlier published studies. IL-2 content--as measured by growth of CTLL cells--was equally high in TCDD and in control cultures at day 1. At day 2, TCDD cultures had decreased dramatically in IL-2 content, possibly due to a high rate of consumption. At this point in time, the controls still contained a high concentration of IL-2, although less than at day 1. In contrast to the increased sensitivity to mitogen stimulation, thymocytes from TCDD-treated mice induced B-cells less avidly with respect to antibody production, and could also inhibit the T-cell help of thymocytes from untreated animals, a phenomenon which could be reversed if TCDD-treated thymocytes were irradiated before culture.
authors.affiliation: Department of Toxicology, Uppsala University, Sweden.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lundberg
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dencker
authors.forename: K O
authors.initials: KO
authors.lastname: Grönvik
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation / Q000187:drug effects; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D004147:Dioxins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000276:immunology; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D013154:Spleen / Q000166:cytology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000276:immunology; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000166:cytology
chemical_list: D004147:Dioxins; D007376:Interleukin-2; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D003208:Concanavalin A