Susceptibility of thermally injured mice to cytomegalovirus infection

Thermally injured patients are very susceptible to infection with cytomegal oviruses. In this study a role of burn-associated type 2 T cell responses o n the cytomegalovirus infection was examined in a mouse model of thermal in jury. A predominance of type 2 T cell responses in splenic lymphocytes of t hermally injured mice has been previously demonstrated. SCID mice inoculate d with splenic T cells from thermally injured mice were susceptible to infe ction with a small amount (5 PFU/mouse) of murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV). C onversely, SCID mice inoculated with splenic T cells from normal mice were resistant to the same infection. High levels of IL-4 and IL-10, but not IFN -gamma and IL-2, were detected in sera of thermally injured mice (TI-mice) infected with MCMV when those were compared with sera of normal mice infect ed with MCMV. IL-4 and IL-10 (type 2 cytokines) were produced by splenic T cells from MCMV-infected TI-mice, when they were stimulated in vitro with a nti-CD3 mAb. Type I cytokines (IFN-gamma and IL-2), however, were not produ ced by these T cells after the same stimulation. In contrast, splenic T cel ls from MCMV-infected normal mice produced type I cytokines by the stimulat ion with anti-CD3 mAb. These results suggest that the susceptibility of mic e to MCMV infection is markedly influenced by burn-associated type 2 T cell responses. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.