title: Low dose of Concanavalin-A enhances innate immune response and prevents liver injury in mice infected with Candida albicans.
abstract: The mechanisms through which Candida albicans is recognized by immune cells and how it triggers host defence are not completely understood. In this study, we evaluated the effect of Concanavalin-A on the clearance of C. albicans by infected mice and their production of proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Subgroups of 5 animals were pretreated with Con-A (250 mug mL(-1) PBS) and after 96 h were infected intraperitoneally with 10(7) cells of C. albicans CR15 (an isolate from a HIV+ person); 30 min, 2, 6, 24 or 72 h after infection the mice were sacrificed. Phagocytosis of C. albicans by peritoneal macrophages increased 30 min after infection in mice pretreated with Con-A. The liver presented the greatest number of CFUs, and this number was reduced by pretreatment with Con-A. Control animals infected with C. albicans presented a significant increase in plasmatic alanine aminotransferase, which was not observed in mice treated with Con-A. Two hours after infection the production of TNF-alpha in the liver of mice pretreated with Con-A was significantly increased. These results suggest that a single dose of Con-A caused a beneficial modulating action of the inflammatory response during infection with C. albicans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathological Sciences, Universidade Estadual de Londrina, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Conchon-Costa
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Loyola
authors.forename: L C J
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Gaziri
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Custódio
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Felipe
mesh_terms: D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D000818:Animals; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology*; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006651:Histocytochemistry; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008099:Liver / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D017737:Macrophages, Peritoneal / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D010587:Phagocytosis; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis
chemical_list: D007155:Immunologic Factors; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D003208:Concanavalin A; D000410:Alanine Transaminase