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  • Title: Dietary nucleosides and nucleotides reduce Cryptosporidium parvum infection in dexamethasone immunosuppressed adult mice.
    Author: Adjei AA, Jones JT, Enriquez FJ, Yamamoto S.
    Journal: Exp Parasitol; 1999 Jul; 92(3):199-208. PubMed ID: 10403761.
    Abstract:
    Numerous studies have demonstrated that dietary sources of nucleosides and nucleotides are important for the maintenance of cellular and humoral immune responses. To determine the immunological effects of feeding a nucleoside-nucleotide mixture to dexamethasone-immunosuppressed C57BL/6 adult mice infected with Cryptosporidium parvum, we examined fecal oocyst shedding, lymphoproliferative responses to concanavalin (Con) A, and C. parvum antigen, interleukin (IL-2), and gamma-interferon (IFN-gamma) production by cultured spleen cells. Mice were fed a nucleotide-free 20% casein diet (control group) or this diet supplemented with a 0. 5% nucleoside-nucleotide mixture before and after inoculation with C. parvum. Spleens from mice receiving the supplemented diet had higher (P < 0.05) Con A and antigen-specific induced cell proliferation than those from control mice. In addition to the increased cell proliferation, the spleen cells from the supplemented mice produced significantly more IL-2 (P < 0.002) and significantly more IFN-gamma (P <; 0.004) than cells from the control mice. Mice fed the supplemented diet excreted fewer (P < 0.05) C. parvum oocysts in the feces than control mice. The cumulative survival rate in the nucleoside-nucleotide mixture-fed group was higher compared with the control group (P < 0.05). We conclude that nucleosides and nucleotides may partially counteract the immunosuppressive effects of dexamethasone in C. parvum-challenged mice.
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