Immunodeficiency Accelerates Vitamin A Deficiency
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Authors
De Luca, Luigi M.
Petrides, Victoria Hill
Darwiche, Nadine
Armey, Laura
Palmer, Amanda
West, Keith P. Jr
Subjects
vitamin A deficiency
athymic mice
SENCAR (SENsitive to CARcinogenesis) mice
immunodeficiency
retinol
retinyl palmitate
athymic mice
SENCAR (SENsitive to CARcinogenesis) mice
immunodeficiency
retinol
retinyl palmitate
Advisors
Date of Issue
2021
Date
Publisher
ASN
Language
Abstract
Background: Vitamin A deficiency increases susceptibility to infection caused by impaired immune function. Objectives: We investigated whether immunodeficiency could facilitate the development of vitamin A deficiency. Methods: Vitamin A deficiency was followed in 2 mouse models of immunodeficiency: the athymic nude mouse (nu/nu) and the humoral immunodeficient SENCAR (SENsitive to CARcinogenesis) mouse. Vitamin A deficiency was also monitored in outbred Balb/c and in NIH mice. The monitoring of vitamin A deficiency was done after feeding the mice and their mothers a semisynthetic, vitamin A–deficient diet from birth of the experimental mice. These mice were weaned onto the same deficient diet at 3–4 wk of age, while control groups were fed the same diet containing 3 μg retinoic acid per gram of diet. Results: The immunodeficient nu/nu and SENCAR mice developed vitamin A deficiency earlier than either the heterozygous nu/+ controls or the Balb/c and NIH strains. In female mice, symptoms included depletion of liver retinol and retinyl palmitate, squamous metaplasia of the uterus, and death. Male mice lost weight more frequently and sooner than female mice, in which mortality generally occurred in the absence of loss of body weight. Pairwise comparisons using Tukey’s honest significant difference test of the nu/nu and SENCAR mice versus the Balb/c and NIH mice showed a faster loss of retinol and retinyl palmitate in all pairs (P ≤ 0.0001) except for retinol when comparing nu/nu and NIH strains (P = 0.3383). Conclusions: Our findings are consistent with an increased usage of liver retinol and retinyl palmitate in the immunocompromised nu/nu and in the immunodeficient SENCAR mice and suggest that compensatory mechanisms dependent on vitamin A utilization are called upon to rescue immunodeficiency both in the T-cell–deficient phenotype of the nu/nu mice and in the humoral immunodeficient SENCAR mice. Curr Dev Nutr 2021;5:nzab129.
Type
Article
Description
17 USC 105 interim-entered record; under temporary embargo.
Series/Report No
Department
Organization
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Identifiers
NPS Report Number
Sponsors
Funder
U.S. Government affiliation is unstated in article text.
Format
12 p.
Citation
De Luca, Luigi M., et al. "Immunodeficiency Accelerates Vitamin A Deficiency." Current Developments in Nutrition 5.11 (2021): nzab129.