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Dietary modulation of the mucosal immune response to a parasite
Author(s) -
McClure Susan J
Publication year - 2009
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.2008.77
Subject(s) - immune system , biology , immunology , antibody , cd8 , antigen , lymphocyte , medicine , endocrinology
This study investigated the hypothesis that dietary deficiency of readily available carbohydrate (raCHO) modifies the immune response of lambs to the gastrointestinal nematode Trichostrongylus colubriformis . Sixty helminthologically naive Merino lambs were fed throughout the experiment diets containing three levels of raCHO that provided adequate, moderate or low intakes according to recommended standards and were given primary or both primary and secondary infections of T. colubriformis . A further 20 uninfected lambs received the low diet for 9 weeks, after which they were returned to the standard diet. Immune status was assessed by the measurement of plasma and jejunal antibody concentrations and blood and jejunal cell numbers and function. Diets low in carbohydrate resulted in a failure of the lambs to gain weight and decreases in plasma glucose concentration, blood lymphocytes expressing CD8 or Tcrγδ, monocytes, eosinophils, platelets and red blood cells, jejunal and plasma antibody concentrations, lymphocyte proliferation to worm antigen and numbers of jejunal CD8 + and Tcrδγ + lymphocytes, eosinophils and CD1b + dendritic cells. Thus, a low dietary concentration of raCHOs impaired the constitutive availability of lymphocytes and antigen‐presenting cells, and the cellular and humoral immunological responses. A hypothesis is suggested for the mechanism and for the possible wider implications.