Abstract
We determined the prophylactic effect of both the d-mannose-binding lectin ArtinM extracted from the seeds of Artocarpus integrifolia (jackfruit) and its recombinant counterpart during the course of experimental paracoccidioidomycosis induced in BALB/c mice. Four experimental protocols of prophylaxis were employed to evaluate the most protective regimen of ArtinM administration. It was demonstrated that the best effect was obtained by administration of two ArtinM doses on days 10 and 3 before the challenge with Paracoccidioides brasiliensis. By following this protocol, the lungs of mice that received native or recombinant ArtinM exhibited reduced fungal burden and granuloma incidence. In addition, the protocol augmented contents of IL-12, IFN-γ, TNF-α and NO. On the other hand, the control group consisting of untreated infected mice had higher pulmonary levels of IL-4 and IL-10. In conclusion, prophylaxis with ArtinM significantly reproduces the effect of its therapeutic administration, i.e, it confers resistance to P. brasiliensis infection in mouse models by promoting IL-12 production and favours Th1-immunity.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Mrs Sandra M.O. Thomaz and Vani M. A. Correa for technical assistance. The histological morphometric analysis was performed in the Laboratory of Applied and Experimental Neurology of the Medical School of Ribeirão Preto, USP. Research supported by FAPESP (00/09333-2 and 06/60642-2), CNPq (350418/ 00-4), and CAPES grants. K.C. Coltri and L. P. Ruas received PhD research fellowships from FAPESP (02/ 12725-5 and 05/00303-7).
Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
This paper was first published online on Early Online on 20 April 2010.