ABSTRACT
Cholera toxin (CT), a major enterotoxin produced by Vibrio cholerae, elicits mucosal adjuvant activities by inducing antigen-specific CD4+ T cells secreting T helper type 2 (Th2) cytokines. Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is induced by Th1 cells specific for myelin-derived antigens. We induced EAE in C57BL/6 mice with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) 35-55 and CT was nasally administered as an immunomodulator on day 7 following MOG challenge. Clinical severity in the CT-treated mice was milder when compared to PBS-treated mice, while the levels of expression of interleukin (IL)-12 and interferon (IFN)-gamma in the central nervous system (CNS) of CT-treated mice were lower than PBS-treated mice. Thus, nasal administration of the mucosal immunomodulator CT ameliorated the severity of EAE, which was associated with the suppression of Th1 cell responses.
Subject(s)
Adjuvants, Immunologic/therapeutic use , Autoimmune Diseases/therapy , Cholera Toxin/therapeutic use , Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental/therapy , Th2 Cells/immunology , Adjuvants, Immunologic/administration & dosage , Adjuvants, Immunologic/pharmacology , Administration, Intranasal , Amino Acid Sequence , Animals , Autoimmune Diseases/immunology , Central Nervous System/immunology , Central Nervous System/metabolism , Cholera Toxin/administration & dosage , Cholera Toxin/immunology , Cholera Toxin/pharmacology , Drug Evaluation, Preclinical , Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental/immunology , Female , Glycoproteins/immunology , Glycoproteins/toxicity , Humans , Interferon-gamma/metabolism , Interleukin-12/metabolism , Mice , Mice, Inbred C57BL , Myelin-Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein , Peptide Fragments/immunology , Peptide Fragments/toxicity , Severity of Illness Index , Spleen/immunology , Th1 Cells/immunology , Th2 Cells/metabolismABSTRACT
A case of meningitis due to Acinetobacter calcoaceticus occurred after neurosurgery. The cerebrospinal fluid cytology showed intracellular diplococci that strongly resembled Neisseria meningitidis. However, subsequent bacteriologic studies revealed a bacterium identical to A. calcoaceticus. It is of practical importance for cytology laboratories to recognize this diplococcal form of organism.
