INFLUENCE OF CHRONIC DIETARY ETHANOL ON CYTOKINE PRODUCTION BY MURINESPLENOCYTES AND THYMOCYTES

Prolonged consumption of ethanol (ETOH) results in alterations of host defense via immune modulation, increasing susceptibility to infection . In the present study, effects of chronic dietary ETOH on cytokine pr oduction by splenocytes and thymocytes, splenocyte and thymocyte proli feration induced by mitogens, splenic natural killer cell activity, an d antibody production (IgA and IgG) were examined. C57BL/6 mice were f ed 5% ETOH v/v in the Lieber-DeCarli liquid diet for 11 weeks. Release of interleukin (IL)-2, IL-5, IL-6, IL-10, and interferon (IFN)gamma p roduced by concanavalin A (Con A) stimulated splenocytes was significa ntly decreased, whereas secretion of IL-4 was slightly decreased by ch ronic dietary ETCH compared with controls. Production of tumor necrosi s factor-alpha and IL-6 by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated splenocytes w as significantly and slightly decreased by ETOH compared with controls , respectively. Splenocyte and thymocyte proliferation induced by Con A was significantly inhibited by ETCH, whereas splenocyte proliferatio n induced by lipopolysaccharide was not affected. Natural killer cell activity was significantly inhibited by ETOH compared with controls. T he production of IgA and IgG by splenocytes were also significantly de creased by ETCH compared with controls. The levels of IL-2, IL-4, and IL-6 produced by Con A-stimulated thymocytes were significantly reduce d by dietary ETOH compared with control, whereas production of IFN-gam ma by thymocytes was not affected. Our results suggest that chronic di etary ETOH alters the cytokine release, thereby impairing immune respo nse and T-cell maturation, which increase host susceptibility to infec tion.