Mycobacterial dose defines the Th1/Th2 nature of the immune response independently of whether immunization is administered by the intravenous, subcutaneous, or intradermal route.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Mycobacterial dose defines the Th1/Th2 nature of the immune response independently of whether immunization is administered by the intravenous, subcutaneous, or intradermal route.

Infect Immun. 1998 Dec;66(12):5743-50. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/99043899
Power CA; Wei G; Bretscher PA; Department of Microbiology, University of Saskatchewan,; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5E5 Canada.

Abstract: It is believed that cell-mediated immunity alone can contain Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the pathogen responsible for tuberculosis. The induction of antibody, or of a mixed cell-mediated/humoral response, is associated with tuberculous disease. It is therefore important to determine the conditions of immunization with bacille Calmette Guerin (BCG), the attenuated strain of Mycobacterium bovis used to vaccinate humans against tuberculosis, that optimally induces an exclusive cell-mediated, Th1 response. Such a determination will then allow an assessment of whether the generation of such an exclusive Th1 response results in the generation of a Th1 imprint against mycobacteria. This Th1 imprint would ensure that the Th1 response is predominant following any challenge. We therefore tested the proposition that the dose of mycobacteria used for immunization generally determines the Th1/Th2 nature of the ensuing response. Our results demonstrate that relatively low doses lead to an almost exclusive cell-mediated, Th1 response, while higher doses induce a mixed Th1/Th2 response. Furthermore, the dependence on dose is independent of whether BCG is administered intravenously, subcutaneously, or intradermally. The implications of our findings to understanding how different classes of immunity are induced, to the epidemiology of tuberculosis, and to the design of effective vaccination strategies are discussed.

Keywords: JOURNAL ARTICLE Animal Antibodies, Bacterial/BLOOD Antigens, Bacterial/IMMUNOLOGY BCG Vaccine/*IMMUNOLOGY Dose-Response Relationship, Drug Drug Administration Routes Hypersensitivity, Delayed Immunity, Cellular Interferon Type II/BIOSYNTHESIS Interleukin-4/BIOSYNTHESIS Lymphokines/BIOSYNTHESIS Mice Mice, Inbred BALB C Mycobacterium bovis/*IMMUNOLOGY Spleen/CYTOLOGY/IMMUNOLOGY Support, Non-U.S. Gov't *Th1 Cells *Th2 Cells Tuberculosis/IMMUNOLOGY Vaccination Vaccines, Attenuated/IMMUNOLOGY
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A9931065

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