A cytokine switch induced by human seminal plasma: an immune modulation with implications for sexually transmitted disease
Abstract
The immunosuppressive activity of human seminal plasma may be one factor in the aetiology of sexually transmitted disease and could be particularly important for the spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The advent of virus that can preferentially infect Langerhans cells of the genital mucosa underscores the relevance of seminal plasma effects. Virally infected cells are eradicated by the killing activity of T cells and natural killer (NK) cells and this cytotoxicity is stimulated by IL-12 (previously known as natural killer cell stimulatory factor) and partly inhibited by IL-10 (previously known as cytokine synthesis inhibitory factor). We have examined the effects of human seminal plasma on the production of these key cytokines. Cytokine production was measured in rapidly diluted, fresh, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated, whole blood since this provided leukocytes with minimal exposure to prostaglandin. Prostaglandin concentrations and cytokine release were measured by ELISA. Addition of human seminal plasma diluted up to 100,000 times (0.001%) to blood cell cultures led to a marked increase in the IL-10/IL-12 ratio (P <0.02). A dose-dependent increase in the ratio was observed in five separate experiments, from a c...Continue Reading
Citations
Related Concepts
Related Feeds
Cancer Biology: Molecular Imaging
Molecular imaging enables noninvasive imaging of key molecules that are crucial to tumor biology. Discover the latest research in molecular imaging in cancer biology in this feed.