K. Akarid et al., KINETICS OF EX-VIVO CYTOKINE PRODUCTION BY SPLENOCYTES DURING MURINE ACQUIRED-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-SYNDROME (MAIDS), European cytokine network, 6(3), 1995, pp. 181-185
The role of T helper 1 (Th1) and T helper 2 (Th2) responses in the mur
ine acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (MAIDS) is unclear, It has been
suggested that differential activation of T cell subsets, particularl
y a shift to Th2 cytokine production, may be associated with disease p
rogression. To clarify the regulation of the cytokine network in the c
ourse of MAIDS, we examined the kinetics of cytokine production by iso
lated splenocytes. C57/BL6 mice were infected with the LP-BM5 mixture,
The spleen cell proliferative response, together with IL-2, IFN-gamma
, IL-10 and IL-4 production by unstimulated and ConA or anti-CDS MoAb-
stimulated spleen cells, were determined at various times after inocul
ation (weeks 1, 3, 6 and 9). Spleen cells isolated from murine leukemi
a virus complex (LP-BM5) infected mice spontaneously produced signific
ant amounts of IL-2 and IFN-gamma one and three weeks post-infection,
compared to uninfected controls. The capacity of isolated T cells to p
roduce the Th1 cytokines IL-2 and IFN-gamma in response to stimulation
with ConA and anti-CD3 MoAb decreased after 3 weeks of infection, The
fall in IL-2 production ran parallel to the fall in the T cell prolif
erative response to ConA, IL-10 production in response to ConA and ant
i-CD3 MoAb increased after three weeks post-inoculation, and followed
the reverse kinetic pattern to IFN-gamma and IL-2, In contrast, no sig
nificant spontaneous IL-4 production and no increase in IL-4 productio
n in response to ConA or anti-CD3 MoAb occurred during the course of M
AIDS, relative to uninfected controls. These results suggest that LP-B
M5 infection leads to a fall in Th1 cytokine production rather than a
clear switch to Th2 cytokine production.