The effects of allopurinol on immune function in normal BALB/c and SCID mice.
To clarify the relationship between purine metabolism and immunity, the in vivo immunosuppressive effects of allopurinol (AL), a xanthinoxidase (XO) inhibitor, were studied using normal BALB/c and severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Following AL administration for 14 weeks (long term), a decreased immune response to ovalbumin (OVA) in the peripheral blood was observed in normal mice, which might not be only due to direct B cell suppression but also due to suppression of helper T cell function. In the SCID mice, there was a markedly late and reduced recovery of surface immunoglobulin (sIg) positive cells, which are markers for mature B lymphocytes, in the peripheral blood after AL administration. The total immunoglobulin G (IgG) titers in the AL treated group were significantly lower than in the control group 6 weeks after stem cell transfer, but increased until there was no difference in the titers between the two groups at week 14. CD4 positive helper T cells and CD8 positive T cells were slow to recover, though these gradually recovered to reach normal levels in the mature stage. These data suggest that the administration of AL may modulate B cell and T cell responses in OVA-immunized antibody formation. Furthermore, this study showed that AL could influence immune functions during the pre-natal and developmental periods and that its effects might differ according to the stages of maturity of the immune cells.
Kato
C
C
The Division of Clinical Nutrition, Department of Food and Nutrition, Japan Women's University, Tokyo, Japan. kato-c@jwu.ac.jp
Sato
K
K
Wakabayashi
A
A
Eishi
Y
Y
D000493:Allopurinol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D007107:Immune System / Q000187:drug effects*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000097:blood; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D016513:Mice, SCID; D010047:Ovalbumin / Q000276:immunology; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000097:blood
D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007136:Immunoglobulins; D014527:Uric Acid; D000493:Allopurinol; D010047:Ovalbumin