ABSTRACT
The main purpose of this investigation was to study some aspects of leucocytes (granulocytes and limphocytes) and the phagocitic activity of peritoneal macrophages. In this experiment, which took place at Escola Paulista de Medicina - Universidade Federal de SÒo Paulo - Brazil, it was used twenty female C57BLACK mice. Half of them were submitted to radiation to obtain immunossupressed animals (group A - irradiated mice). The other ten mice were not irradiated (Group B - control). The animals were sorted in four subgroups: A-1, A-2, B-1 and B-2. Mice of the groups A-1 and B-1 were injected with saline, and those the subgroups A-2 and B-2, were infected with Candida albicans (ATCC 90029). The resultant data showed significant differences in the number of leucocytes (granulocytes and limphocytes), and in the medium size of limphocytes between irradiated and non irradiated mice. Related to peritoneal macrophages, it was observed that the number of macrophages was lower in irradiated mice and the phagocitic activity was decreased in the irradiated and infected animals.