title: Alteration of cell-mediated immunity to Listeria monocytogenes in protein-malnourished mice treated with thymosin fraction V.
abstract: Cell-mediated immune reactivity, measured by lymphocyte responsiveness to phytohemagglutinin, was higher in both young or aged mice fed a 4% casein diet compared with age-matched controls. Treatment in vivo with bovine thymosin fraction V decreased the responsiveness to phytohemagglutinin of lymphocytes from mice fed either the control or moderately protein-deficient diets when compared with mice treated in vivo with saline. Resistance against Listeria monocytogenes, known to be a cell-mediated immune function, was impaired in young and aged mice which were fed the low-protein diet. Treatment with thymosin was able to significantly improve the cell-mediated immune resistance to L. monocytogenes of moderately protein-malnourished mice. Thymosin treatment impaired the resistance to L. monocytogenes of young or aged mice fed the control diet. The splenic natural killer cell cytotoxicity of protein-malnourished mice was impaired compared with that of mice fed the control diet. Treatment with thymosin did not restore the natural killer cell cytotoxic activity in protein-malnourished mice, but did enhance that activity in control mice.
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D002364:Caseins / Q000172:deficiency; D003864:Depression, Chemical; D005260:Female; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000187:drug effects; D008088:Listeriosis / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins / Q000494:pharmacology; D011488:Protein Deficiency / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D013947:Thymosin / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013951:Thymus Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D002364:Caseins; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; D013951:Thymus Hormones; D013947:Thymosin