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Adjuvant activity of respirable iron ore dust
Author(s) -
Keast D,
Sheppard N,
Nguyen DT
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
immunology and cell biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.999
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1440-1711
pISSN - 0818-9641
DOI - 10.1038/icb.1989.26
Subject(s) - adjuvant , phytohaemagglutinin , lipopolysaccharide , immune system , inhalation , polyclonal antibodies , antibody , iron ore , immunology , immunity , chemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , medicine , metallurgy , biology , materials science , anatomy
Summary The influence of the respirable fraction of an iron ore dust on immunity has been studied. The iron ore dust enhanced the specific immune responses to both sheep erythrocytes and a bacterial lipopolysaccharide. The IgG class of antibody was enhanced significantly and its pattern of enhancement suggested that the iron ore dust was functioning as an adjuvant. In studies to test this possibility further, the pattern of antibody development over both the primary and the secondary immune response to sheep erythrocytes closely matched that of Freund's incomplete adjuvant and low levels of silica. The splenocytes, from animals that had received iron ore dust for various lengths of time, exhibited enhanced polyclonal mitogenic activity for phytohaemagglutinin, in vitro . These properties were seen when the dust had been inhaled or injected into the pleural cavity and persisted for over 1 year following the injection or inhalation of the dust. Attempts to show the induction of interleukin‐1 by the macrophages from mice implanted intraperitoneally with the iron ore dust were unsuccessful.