We have previously shown that bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum) has immunomodulatory effects on mouse natural killer (NK) cells by reducing cytotoxicity. Alternatively, it has been demonstrated that selenium can enhance NK cell activity. Therefore, the aims of the present study were to evaluate if ptaquiloside, the main toxic component found in P. aquilinum, is responsible for the immunotoxic effects observed in mice, and if selenium supplementation could prevent or even reverse these effects. Male C57BL/6 mice were administered the P. aquilinum extract by daily gavage for 30 days, and histological analyses revealed a significant reduction in splenic white pulp area that was fully reversed by selenium treatment. In addition, mice administered ptaquiloside by daily gavage for 14 days demonstrated the same reduction of NK cell activity as the P. aquilinum extract, and this reduction was prevented by selenium co-administration. Lastly, non-adherent splenic cells treated in vitro with an RPMI extract of P. aquilinum also showed diminished NK cell activity that was not only prevented by selenium co-treatment but also fully reversed by selenium post-treatment. The results of this study clearly show that the immunosuppressive effects of P. aquilinum are induced by ptaquiloside and that selenium supplementation can prevent as well as reverse these effects.

Pteridium aquilinum, one of the most important poisonous plants in the world, is known to be carcinogenic to animals and humans. Moreover, our previous studies showed that the immunosuppressive effects of ptaquiloside, its main toxic agent, were prevented by selenium in mouse natural killer (NK) cells. We also verified that this immunosuppression facilitated development of cancer. Here, we performed gene expression microarray analysis in splenic NK cells from mice treated for 14 days with ptaquiloside (5.3 mg/kg) and/or selenium (1.3 mg/kg) to identify gene transcripts altered by ptaquiloside that could be linked to the immunosuppression and that would be prevented by selenium. Transcriptome analysis of ptaquiloside samples revealed that 872 transcripts were expressed differentially (fold change>2 and p<0.05), including 77 up-regulated and 795 down-regulated transcripts. Gene ontology analysis mapped these up-regulated transcripts to three main biological processes (cellular ion homeostasis, negative regulation of apoptosis and regulation of transcription). Considering the immunosuppressive effect of ptaquiloside, we hypothesized that two genes involved in cellular ion homeostasis, metallothionein 1 (Mt1) and metallothionein 2 (Mt2), could be implicated because Mt1 and Mt2 are responsible for zinc homeostasis, and a reduction of free intracellular zinc impairs NK functions. We confirm these hypotheses and show increased expression of metallothionein in splenic NK cells and reduction in free intracellular zinc following treatment with ptaquiloside that were completely prevented by selenium co-treatment. These findings could help avoid the higher susceptibility to cancer that is induced by P. aquilinum-mediated immunosuppressive effects.

RESUMOAvaliaram-se a proliferação de linfόcitos e a apoptose de células CD5 + de bovinos naturalmente infectados pelo vírus da leucose enzoόtica bovina. Para tal, 100 vacas da raça Holandesa, em lactação, foram triadas quanto ao sorodiagnόstico para a leucose enzoόtica bovina e o perfil hematolόgico, e 15 foram escolhidos e distribuídos uniformemente entre os três grupos, a saber: animais negativos, animais positivos alinfocitόticos e animais positivos e que manifestaram linfocitose persistente (LP). Para a avaliação da proliferação de linfόcitos, procedeu-se ao isolamento das células mononucleares por gradiente de centrifugação, em que 2x10 6 linfόcitos por mL foram plaqueados por poço e analisados por citometria de fluxo utilizando-se o fluorocromo CFSE-DA. A apoptose do sangue periférico deu-se utilizando a anexina V-FITC, e para a identificação das células CD5 + , utilizaram-se anticorpos monoclonais. Ocorreu menor proliferação de linfόcitos nos animais infectados e que manifestavam LP, e menor apoptose de células CD5 + do sangue periférico. Pode-se sugerir que o desenvolvimento da LP, resultante do aumento de linfόcitos B, deve-se à redução do processo apoptótico das células CD5 + , principal população infectada, e que a maior proliferação linfocitária pode se restringir apenas ao estádio inicial do desenvolvimento da LP.Palavras-chave: leucose enzoόtica bovina, proliferação de linfόcito, apoptose ABSTRACT The purpose of the present trail was to evaluate the lymphocyte proliferation and the apoptosis rates of CD5 + cells in dairy cows infected with bovine leukemia virus (BLV) with distinct lymphocyte profiles in infected animals known as alymphocytotic (AL) and persistent lymphocytosis (PL). A total of 100 Holstein cows were sera tested for bovine leukemia virus through agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent-assay (ELISA). From these animals, 15 cows were selected and divided uniformly in 3 groups (negative, AL, LP). The lymphocyte proliferation was performed using flow cytometric measurement of CFSE-

The results of our previous study demonstrated that ptaquiloside, the main toxic agent found in Pteridium aquilinum, suppresses natural killer (NK) cell-mediated cytotoxicity. However, the ability of ptaquiloside to suppress the cytotoxicity of NK cells was prevented by selenium supplementation. NK cells play an important role in the innate immune response and have the ability to kill tumor cells. Therefore, we hypothesized that selenium may prevent the higher susceptibility to urethane-induced lung carcinogenesis that has been observed in mice treated with P. aquilinum. The immunosuppressive effects of ptaquiloside have been associated with a higher number of urethane-induced lung nodules in mice. Hence, we assessed the effects of P. aquilinum-induced immunosuppression on urethane-induced lung carcinogenesis in C57BL/6 mice that had been supplemented with selenium. For these experiments, mice were treated with both an aqueous extract of P. aquilinum (20 g/kg/day) and selenium (1.3 mg/kg) by gavage once daily for 14 days followed by a once-weekly intraperitoneal injection of urethane (1 g/kg) for 10 weeks that was accompanied by gavage 5 days a week. Lung adenomas in mice that had been treated with P. aquilinum plus urethane occurred with a frequency that was 44% higher than that in mice that had been treated with only urethane. In mice that had been supplemented with selenium and treated with P. aquilinum plus urethane, the occurrence of lung adenomas was reduced to 26%. These results suggest that selenium prevents the immunosuppressive effects of P. aquilinum on urethane-induced lung carcinogenesis.

The objective of the present study is to evaluate the relationship between immunosuppression caused by Pteridium aquilinum and lung carcinogenesis induced by ethyl carbamate (EC) in mice. Plant buds were collected in São Paulo, Brazil. It was shown that P. aquilinum increased the number of lesions/mouse and the percentage of neoplastic lesions in the lungs of treated mice. In conclusion, the immunosuppression caused by P. aquilinum facilitates the development of lung carcinogenesis in mice.