Abstract
Iron deficiency is often associated with the impairment of the immune system, particularly the functioning of T-cell lymphocytes. Studies were therefore carried out in mice to investigate the involvement of iron in T-cell functions. Iron deficiency in mice was induced nutritionally by feeding diets differing in iron content for 4 weeks to produce normal, moderately low and severely low haematological indices. The proliferation of lymphocytes stimulated by Con A from these groups of mice was significantly affected by the degree of iron deficiency. Iron depletion also resulted in decreased production of interleukin 2 (IL-2) in the proliferating cells. The implications of these findings in the manifestation of iron deficiency anaemia are discussed.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 207-9 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Scandinavian journal of immunology. Supplement |
Volume | 11 |
Publication status | Published - 1992 |
Keywords
- Lymphocyte Activation
- Animals
- Interleukin-2
- DNA
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred BALB C
- Iron