Low dose of Concanavalin-A enhances innate immune response and prevents liver injury in mice infected with Candida albicans

• Published in: FEMS immunology and medical microbiology 2007-04, Vol.49 (3), p.330-336
• Main Authors: Conchon-Costa, I, Loyola, W, Gaziri, L.C.J, Custódio, L.A, Felipe, I
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alanine; Alanine transaminase; Alanine Transaminase - blood; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Candida albicans; Candida albicans - growth & development; Candida albicans - immunology; Candidiasis - drug therapy; Candidiasis - immunology; Candidiasis - microbiology; Candidiasis - pathology; Colony Count, Microbial; Concanavalin A - administration & dosage; Concanavalin-A; Disease Models, Animal; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Histocytochemistry; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Immune clearance; Immune response; Immune system; immunity; Immunologic Factors - administration & dosage; Infections; Inflammation; Inflammatory response; Injury prevention; innate immune response; Innate immunity; Liver; Liver - immunology; Liver - microbiology; Liver - pathology; Macrophages; Macrophages, Peritoneal - immunology; Mice; Microbiology; Miscellaneous; Mushrooms; Mycology; Peritoneum; Phagocytosis; Pretreatment; Subgroups; Survival Analysis; TNF-α; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - biosynthesis; Tumor necrosis factor-TNF; Tumor necrosis factor-α
• ISSN: 0928-8244; 1574-695X; 2049-632X
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1574-695X.2006.00201.x

The mechanisms through which Candida albicans is recognized by immune cells and how it triggers host defence are not completely understood. In this study, we evaluated the effect of Concanavalin-A on the clearance of C. albicans by infected mice and their production of proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Subgroups of 5 animals were pretreated with Con-A (250 μg mL⁻¹ PBS) and after 96 h were infected intraperitoneally with 10⁷ cells of C. albicans CR15 (an isolate from a HIV+ person); 30 min, 2, 6, 24 or 72 h after infection the mice were sacrificed. Phagocytosis of C. albicans by peritoneal macrophages increased 30 min after infection in mice pretreated with Con-A. The liver presented the greatest number of CFUs, and this number was reduced by pretreatment with Con-A. Control animals infected with C. albicans presented a significant increase in plasmatic alanine aminotransferase, which was not observed in mice treated with Con-A. Two hours after infection the production of TNF-α in the liver of mice pretreated with Con-A was significantly increased. These results suggest that a single dose of Con-A caused a beneficial modulating action of the inflammatory response during infection with C. albicans.