title: Down-modulation of lymphoproliferation and interferon-gamma production by beta-glucan derived from Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
abstract: beta-glucan, one of the major cell wall components of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, has been found to enhance immune functions. This study investigated in vivo and in vitro effects of beta-glucan on lymphoproliferation and interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) production by splenic cells from C57BL/6 female mice. All experiments were performed with particulate beta-glucan derived from S. cerevisiae. Data demonstrated that both, i.p. administration of particulate beta-glucan (20 or 100 micrograms/animal) and in vitro stimulation of splenic cells (20 or 100 micrograms/ml of culture) decreased lymphoproliferation and IFN-gamma production induced by concanavalin A. These results suggest that beta-glucan can trigger a down-modulatory effect regulating a deleterious immune system hyperactivity in the presence of a strong stimulus.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Microbiologia e Imunologia, Instituto de Biociências da Unesp, Faculdade de Medicina, Campus de Botucatu, 18618-000 Botucatu, SP, Brasil. acpelizon@bol.com.br
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Pelizon
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kaneno
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Meira
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sartori
mesh_terms: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D005936:Glucans / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000187:drug effects; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000737:chemistry*; D013154:Spleen / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D005936:Glucans; D003208:Concanavalin A; D007371:Interferon-gamma