title: Restorative effect of short term administration of thymulin on thymus-dependent antibody production in restraint-stressed mice.
abstract: Thymulin is a well defined nonapeptide produced by thymic epithelial cells, and plays an important role in thymocyte differentiation. We investigated the restorative effect of thymulin on the stress-induced reduction in the production of antibodies against SRBC in mice. Antibody production in stressed mice was reduced to about 50% of that in normal mice. A 3-day period of administration of thymulin (1 ng/kg) restored antibody production to close to the normal level, whereas thymulin (1 ng-1 microgram/kg) did not affect antibody production in normal mice. These results indicated that thymulin normalizes the altered thymus-dependent immune responses.
authors.affiliation: Santen Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd, Central Research Laboratories, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okamoto
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Morishita
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Setoguchi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakata
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation / Q000187:drug effects*; D002712:Chlorides / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000276:immunology*; D013935:Thymic Factor, Circulating / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000502:physiology*; D017967:Zinc Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D002712:Chlorides; D017967:Zinc Compounds; C016837:zinc chloride; D013935:Thymic Factor, Circulating