Ingested beta-carotene enhances glutathione level and up-regulates the activity of cysteine cathepsin in murine splenocytes.
To elucidate health benefits of beta-carotene, especially on immunity, we measured redox-related indices in spleen cells from BALB/c mice supplemented with various amounts of beta-carotene. In mice supplemented with beta-carotene in their diet, glutathione, an intracellular anti-oxidation agent, increased in their splenocytes. This change was highly correlated with the accumulation of beta-carotene, but not with that of retinol. The increase in glutathione was accompanied by an increase in mRNA for gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase, a rate-limiting enzyme for glutathione synthesis. The higher the glutathione content was in the spleen cells, the higher the activity of cysteine cathepsin became in crude antigen-presenting cells contained in the spleen. These data suggest that accumulated beta-carotene in splenocytes, without being metabolized, caused an increase in the intracellular glutathione level, thereby anti-oxidatively supporting the activity of redox-sensitive lysosomal protease, which is involved in antigen-presentation.
Department of Food Science, Graduate School of Nutrition and Biosciences, The University of Tokushima, Japan.
Saki
S
Takeda
Noriko
N
Bando
Rintaro
R
Yamanishi
D000818:Animals; D000938:Antigen-Presenting Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D002403:Cathepsins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003545:Cysteine / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D013154:Spleen / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D019207:beta Carotene / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology*
D019207:beta Carotene; D002403:Cathepsins; D005978:Glutathione; D003545:Cysteine