Effects of blockage of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal cortex axis by metyrapone and Jiawei Xiaoyao Pills on immune system in mice exposed to chronic emotional stress

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 363-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yun Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
Adrenal Cortex ◽  
Emotional Stress ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal

Abstract 293: Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation Causes Immunodeficiency That Involves the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis

Circulation ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 138 (Suppl_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuntian Shen ◽  
Qiang Zhao ◽  
Jiangbo Wu ◽  
Zhuoran Wang ◽  
Wei Yang
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Cardiac Arrest ◽  
Immune System ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Infectious Complications ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Immune Organs ◽  
High Incidence

Introduction: Cardiac arrest (CA) is associated with high mortality and morbidity, which is in part due to infectious complications developed in CA patients. Infection complications, particularly pneumonia, occur in approximately 60% of CA patients. Given this high incidence, we hypothesized that after CA, the immune system is impaired, which increases the susceptibility of CA patients to potential infections. Therefore, in this study, we systematically examined the immune response in the brain and peripheral immune organs after CA. Methods: Mice were subjected to CA and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CA/CPR). Flow cytometry, ELISA, immunohistochemistry, and quantitative PCR were used to analyze the immune response in various post-CA organs. Results: First, we characterized the time course of the immune response in the spleen after CA/CPR. CA/CPR induced significant changes in all major immune cell populations. Notably, B cell frequencies decreased, while T cell frequencies increased, in various organs on day 3 post-CA. Further, the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, eg IL-6, were markedly increased in the blood and brain after CA. Critically, we found that the lymphocyte counts in the spleen and thymus were dramatically lower in CA mice than in sham mice. Interestingly, CA/CPR caused progressive atrophy of the spleen and thymus. Since it has been shown that CA/CPR alters activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, we speculated that CA-induced atrophy of lymphoid organs is mediated by the HPA axis. Thus, we treated CA mice with RU486, a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist. Indeed, this treatment reversed CA-induced organ atrophy and mitigated immune cell depletion, both in the thymus and spleen. Conclusions: We provided for the first time evidence that CA/CPR rapidly induced a systemic inflammatory response followed by impairment of the immune system, which eventually led to a massive loss of immune cells in the peripheral immune organs. This CA-induced immunodeficiency appears to be mediated by dysregulation of the HPA axis. Our findings here may be of high clinical significance, considering the high incidence of infectious complications in CA patients and their detrimental effects on CA outcome.

scholarly journals Radionuclide activity and the immune system functioning in residents of radiation contaminated areas

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-96 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. L. Sokolenko ◽  
S. V. Sokolenko
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
T Lymphocytes ◽  
Blood Serum ◽  
Emotional Stress ◽  
Cortisol Level ◽  
Relative Number ◽  
System Functioning ◽  
Positive Correlations ◽  
Immune System Functioning ◽  
Radionuclide Activity

The objective of this research is to assess the relation of radioactive contamination degree to immune system functioning, in the absence or presence of additional potential immunosuppressants. To achieve the objective, during the period of 1995–2015 we examined 250 people, students of Cherkasy State University, who lived in the areas of enhanced radiation monitoring before. Also we evaluated the additional impact of the emotional stress caused by examinations on examined students. Indicators of cellular immunity were determined by immunophenotyping and dyeing using Romanowsky-Giemsa method. The level of immunoglobulins in blood serum was determined by radial immunodiffusion (Mancini method). The level of cortisol in blood serum was determined by immunoenzyme method. We have found that in absence of the emotional stress among residents of the areas contaminated with radionuclides, cortisol level remained at the upper limit of homeostatic norm. There is an average positive correlation between the activity of radionuclides in the territories of residence and the level of cortisol. There are marked average positive correlations between the activity of radionuclides and the level of neutrophils, and low positive correlations with the levels of IgG and IgM in blood serum. Average negative correlations between the activity of radionuclides and the following parameters are also observed: absolute and relative number of functionally mature T-lymphocytes with phenotype CD3+, absolute and relative number of their helper subpopulation CD4+, absolute and relative number of natural killer cells with phenotype CD16+; and strong negative correlations with immunoregulatory index CD4+/CD8+. Cortisol level shows the similar correlation with the same parameters, but correlation coefficient is lower. Under conditions of additional stress, caused by emotional load during the examinations, cortisol level significantly increases. This enhanced previously discovered correlations and revealed new ones: average negative correlations between radionuclide activity / cortisol level and expression of pan-T cell marker CD5, medium positive correlations with absolute and relative number of suppressor T-lymphocytes with phenotype CD8+, correlation with the level of serum IgG changes from positive to negative. Additional short-term stress factor combined with chronic influence of low doses of radiation increases the dependence of immunosuppression, caused by radiation contamination of the areas where examined students live, and causes failures in the work of compensatory mechanisms, particularly at the level of serum immunoglobulin products. 

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