Transferrin treatment corrects aging-related immunologic and hormonal decay in old mice.
Experiments were conducted to study the effect of heterologous plasma transferrins separated and purified from human plasma pools on endocrine and immune functions of old, aging mice. Two similar experiments have shown that parenteral treatment with iron and zinc-free human transferrins produces a significant improvement of immunological and endocrine functions in the aging mice toward more juvenile values. Those changes occur in the thymus and its cell subsets, in peripheral blood lymphocytes, in the restoration of juvenile levels of thyroxine, in the increase of testis weight, and in the normalization of plasma zinc levels. These totally unsuspected effects of transferrin in aging mice suggest a most important role of endogenous transferrins in the maintenance of neuroendocrine and immune functions. The mechanism remains unexplained although the basic immunoenhancing and anti-apoptotic effect of transferrin-vehiculated zinc may be relevant.
Pierpaoli
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W
Jean Choay Institute for Biomedical Research, INTERBION Foundation for Biomedical Research and CHRONOLIFE Inc., Riva San Vitale, Switzerland. chrono@dial.eunet.ch
Bulian
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D
Arrighi
S
S
D000311:Adrenal Glands / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D000375:Aging / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D010053:Ovary / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D013737:Testis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D013961:Thyroid Gland / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D014168:Transferrin / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*
D014168:Transferrin