title: Lack of Impact of High Dietary Vitamin A on T Helper 2-Dependent Contact Hypersensitivity to Fluorescein Isothiocyanate in Mice.
abstract: Overuse of vitamin A as a dietary supplement is a concern in industrialized countries. High-level dietary vitamin A is thought to shift immunity to a T helper 2 (Th2)-dominant one, resulting in the promotion of allergies. We have been studying a fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-induced contact hypersensitivity (CHS) mouse model that involves Th2-type immunity. We fed a diet with a high retinyl palmitate content (250 international units (IU)/g diet) or a control diet (4 IU/g diet) to BALB/c mice for three weeks. No augmentation of FITC-induced CHS was found in mice fed the diet with a high vitamin A content, although accumulation of the vitamin was confirmed in the livers of these animals. The results indicated that relatively short-term feeding of the high-level vitamin A diet did not influence the Th2-driven response at a stage with significant retinol accumulation in the liver. The results were in contrast to the high-dose pyridoxine diets that produced a reduced response in FITC-induced CHS.
authors: Laboratory of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Shizuoka.
authors: Chie
authors: C
authors: Kobayashi
authors: Kohta
authors: K
authors: Kurohane
authors: Yasuyuki
authors: Y
authors: Imai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003877:Dermatitis, Contact / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology*; D004032:Diet; D019587:Dietary Supplements / Q000009:adverse effects; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004224:Diterpenes; D019793:Fluorescein; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; D017879:Isothiocyanates / Q000276:immunology*; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D011736:Pyridoxine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects; D000084562:Retinyl Esters; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D058408:Th1-Th2 Balance; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004224:Diterpenes; D017879:Isothiocyanates; D000084562:Retinyl Esters; D014801:Vitamin A; C014794:retinol palmitate; C037152:isothiocyanic acid; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; D011736:Pyridoxine; D019793:Fluorescein