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Scientists at Michigan State University have linked a common food preservative to an altered immune response that could potentially hinder influenza vaccines.
The study conducted on mice, presented at the 2019 meeting on experimental biology in Orlando, Florida on April 7 at 9 am, offers a new potential factor for vaccine efficacy.
Tert-Butylhydroquinone, or tBHQ, can be found in many food products, including cooking oils, frozen meats (including fish) and processed foods such as chips and crackers. The products do not always have to include it in the ingredient lists.
"If you get a vaccine, but that part of the immune system does not learn to recognize and fight off virus-infected cells, then the vaccine will be less effective," said Robert Freeborn, a PhD student. in fourth year. led the study with Cheryl Rockwell, badociate professor in pharmacology and toxicology. "We determined that the introduction of tBHQ through the diet affected certain cells that play an important role in the proper immune response to the flu."
Freeborn and Rockwell used a variety of influenza strains, including H1N1 and H3N2, focusing on CD4 and CD8 T cells and incorporating tBHQ into mouse food in an amount comparable to human consumption.
"CD4 T cells are like movie directors telling everyone what to do," said Freeborn. "The CD8 T cells are the actors who do what the director wants."
The researchers looked at several response factors, including the presence of T cells, their ability to do the right job, and finally, to recognize and remember the invading virus.
"Overall, we found a reduction in the number of CD8 T cells in the lungs and a reduction in the number of CD4 and CD8 T cells able to identify the influenza virus in mice exposed to tBHQ," he said. Freeborn. "These mice also had generalized inflammation and mucous production in their lungs."
TBHQ also slowed the initial activation of T cells, reducing their ability to fight an infection earlier. This allowed the virus to spread in mice until the cells were fully activated.
A second phase of the study showed that the additive interfered with the ability of the immune system to remember how to react to the influenza virus, especially when another strain was introduced at another time. This resulted in longer recovery and additional weight loss in the mice.
"It's important for the body to recognize a virus and remember how to fight it effectively," said Freeborn. "It is the interest of vaccines to stimulate this memory and produce immunity." TBHQ seems to hinder this process.
The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health.
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Material provided by University of Michigan. Note: Content can be changed for style and length.
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