ovalbumin and Alcoholism

This paper introduces a transgenic (Tg) mouse in which the majority of the CD4-bearing T cells have T-cell receptors that react with ovalbumin (OVA) as a model for ethanol research. Although these Tg animals were bred onto the BALB/c genetic background, a strain generally considered to be nonpreferring in ethanol consumption, we determined that BALB/c mice would consume an ethanol-containing liquid diet, without significant mortality, and assessed alteration of specific immune responses. BALB/c, C57BL/6 (B6), or (BALB/c x C57BL/6)F-1 hybrid (CB6F1) mice were fed LED containing 35, 30, 25, or 20% ethanol-derived calories. Significant mortality (> 40%) was seen only in BALB/c and pronounced weight loss was seen in BALB/c, B6, CB6F1 mice when they were fed the diet containing the greatest ethanol concentration (LED35). Diets containing lesser amounts of ethanol did not cause mortality. Liquid diets containing > or = 30% ethanol-derived calories significantly impaired the chicken gamma-globulin-specific delayed hypersensitivity responses in BALB/c, B6, and CB6F1mice without significantly affecting the humoral immune response to sheep red blood cells. We show that immunization of the Tg mice is not required for the development of a vigorous "delayed hypersensitivity" response to OVA or the I-Ad-restricted peptide OVA323-339 in mice fed standard solid lab chow or liquid control diet. In marked contrast, OVA Tg mice fed ethanol show a profound inhibition of this immune response, indicating that ethanol-induced inhibition of cell-mediated immunity occurs independently of antigen priming.

Topics: Alcoholism; Animals; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Ethanol; Female; Hypersensitivity, Delayed; Immune Tolerance; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Transgenic; Ovalbumin; Peptide Fragments; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; T-Lymphocytes

A study was undertaken to compare IgG, IgA, IgM, IgE and IgD antibodies in adult alcoholic, depressive and schizophrenic patients with healthy, adult controls. Total IgG, -IgA, -IgM, -IgE, and -IgD and specific-IgE antibodies were assessed using 33 allergens: 12 inhalant and 21 foods. There was no significant difference observed in the total immunoglobulin results between the patients and controls. There were, however, significant differences between the groups for allergen specific-IgE with the depressive patients exhibiting the greatest number of positive test results. The depressives had an over-all t-test value of 10.080 (5% = 1.960), the alcoholics t = 6.800 and the schizophrenics t = 6.015. The most often positive allergens were those from the perennial/mold group, although the most frequently positive single allergen was egg white and 100% of the depressives were sensitive to it. The data in this investigation suggest that psychiatric patients with alcohol dependence, depression and schizophrenia be studied further so that information on a causal relationship between allergen specific-IgE antibodies and these mental disorders can be evaluated.

Topics: Adult; Alcoholism; Allergens; Animals; Depression; Dogs; Edible Grain; Humans; Immunoglobulin A; Immunoglobulin D; Immunoglobulin E; Immunoglobulin G; Immunoglobulins; Milk; Ovalbumin; Schizophrenia