PROTEIN MALNUTRITION AFFECTS THE DEVELOPMENT

SALVA SUSANA; MERINO CECILIA; VILLENA JULIO; GRUPPI ADRIANA; ALVAREZ SUSANA

Tafí del Valle. Tucumán. Argentina

Jornada; XXVI Jornadas Científicas de la Asociación de Biología de Tucumán; 2009

Asociación de Biología de Tucumán

Protein malnutrition decreases resistance to infection due to the alteration of various physiological processes, including hematopoiesis. This work evaluated the effect of protein malnutrition on the ontogeny and function of spleen and bone marrow (BM) B lymphocytes (BL). Weaning mice were malnourished by protein deficiency for 21d (M). Control mice (C) received a balanced conventional diet. In the M and C groups the following were evaluated: expression of B220, HSA and IgM in BM and spleen cells by flow cytometry, total IgM and IgG levels in culture supernatants of spleen BL, stimulated with LPS or CpG, and proliferative capacity of spleen BL. Malnutrition significantly decreased the total cell number in BM and spleen, mainly affecting the BL population (B220+). In BM, the M group showed a marked decrease in immature BL population (B220lowHSAhighIgM+/-) (p<0.01), whereas the spleen showed a decrease in mature LB (B220high HSAlowIgM+) (p<0.05) with respect to the C group. Levels of total IgM and IgG in the M group were not different from the C mice. BL proliferative capacity in response to LPS and CpG was similar in both groups. Malnutrition affects B lymphopoiesis in spleen and BM, decreasing production and number of BL without affecting the functionality of these cells. According to these results, the increased susceptibility to infections in malnourished mice would be due, at least partly, to quantitative rather than qualitative alterations in BL