Suppression of acute experimental allergic encephalomyelitis by synthetic serum thymic factor

Abstract

Acute experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) was induced in Hartley guinea pigs and Lewis rats, which were then treated with synthetic serum thymic factor (FTS). When a dose of 30 micrograms/100 g body weight of FTS was subcutaneously administered to the animals on days--1 (before inoculation), 4, 9 and 15 intermittently, clinical symptoms of acute EAE were suppressed. Histopathological evaluation showed that the severity of EAE in FTS-treated guinea pigs was less than in untreated guinea pigs. Immunohistochemical examination showed that the numbers of OX6+, W3/25+, W3/13+ and OX19+ cells in FTS-treated rats were less than in untreated rats and that the number of OX8+ cells in FTS-treated rats was greater than in untreated rats. These findings suggest that FTS induced OX8+ cells in inflammatory lesions and suppressed inflammation in acute EAE.

Thymic peptides and neuroendocrine-immune communication

“…Osanai & Sakakibara, 1982; Kato & Nakamura, 1988). Similarly, the aberrant T-cell responses evident in NZB mice (a model of human autoimmune disease) are reduced by thymulin, although to our knowledge no long-term improvement in survival or clinical state has yet been reported (Bach, Bach, Blanot et al 1978;Israel-Beit, Noel & Bach, 1983).…”

Thymulin: An Emerging Anti-Inflammatory Molecule

“…Furthermore, histopathological evaluation showed that the severity of EAE in FTS-treated guinea pigs was less than in untreated animals. Of note, immuno-histochemical examination showed that the numbers of CD8+, W3/25+, W3/13+ and CD19+ cells in FTS-treated rats were less than in untreated rats and that the number of CD8+ cells in FTS-treated rats was greater than in untreated rats, suggesting that FTS induces CD8+ cells in inflammatory lesions and suppresses inflammation in acute EAE [35]. On the contrary, in a study aimed at restoring decreased Tcell functions and reduced susceptibility to proteolipid apoprotein (PLP) induced-EAE in old mice with thymic hormones, thymosin fraction 5 (TF-5) and FTS had no significant in vitro and in vivo effect on proliferative responses to PLP and concanavalin A (Con A), and on EAE induction in young and old mice [16].…”

“…A conventional example was reported with EAE which was induced in Hartley guinea pigs and Lewis rats that were treated with synthetic FTS [35]. Intermittently, clinical symptoms of acute EAE were suppressed.…”

“…For instance, thymulin exhibited therapeutic actions in conditions such as ageing [21], Alzheimer's disease (AD) [37], chronic graft-versus-host disease [4], immune deficiency [7,28], subacute sclerosing panencephalitis [26], myasthenia gravis [39], cancer [25,32,80], rheumatoid arthritis (RA) [1,17], Down's syndrome [19,38], diabetes [84], viral [42,46] and parasitic [34] infections, drug-induced toxicity [78] and transplantation [8,30,76]. Moreover, the in vivo treatment with synthetic thymulin ameliorated acute experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE) with specific restoration of lymphocyte populations [35]. This was corroborated with thymulin ability to modulate inflammatory responses in patients afflicted with multiple sclerosis (MS) [33,45,54].…”

Effect of thymic hormones on induction of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in old mice.

“…FTS is known to be an inducer of T-suppressor cells (Back 1979), and suppression of acute EAE by FTS was reported (Nagai et al 1982; Kato and Nakamura 1988). But FTS had no effect on induction of EAE in young BALB/c mice.…”