Immune responses induced by heat killed XXXX : a vaccine against fungal infection.

@entity630 @entity19 @entity636 @entity5168 @entity8318 @entity777 @entity6656 @entity375 @entity637
Heat-killed @entity375 (HKY) used as a vaccine protects @entity19 against @entity8318 and @entity6656 . Little is known about the immune response induced by HKY vaccination, consequently our goal was to do an analysis of HKY-induced immune responses involved in protection. BALB/c @entity19 were vaccinated subcutaneously 3 times with HKY, a protective reagent, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, spleen, lymph nodes, and serum collected 2-5 weeks later. Cultured spleen or lymph node cells were stimulated with HKY. Proliferation of HKY-stimulated spleen or lymph node cells was tested by Alamar Blue reduction and flow cytometry. Cytokines from lymphocyte supernatants and antibody to glycans in serum collected from HKY-vaccinated @entity19 were measured by ELISA. The results show that HKY promoted spleen cell and lymph node cell proliferation from HKY-vaccinated @entity19 but not from PBS-vaccinated control @entity19 (all P<0.05). Cytokine measurement showed HKY significantly promoted IFNy, @entity777 and @entity636 production by spleen cells and lymph node cells (all P<0.05 and P<0.01, respectively). Cytokine production by HKY-stimulated cells from PBS-vaccinated @entity19 was lower than those from HKY-vaccinated (P<0.05). Cytokines in BAL from HKY-vaccinated were higher, 1.7-fold for IFNy and 2.1-fold for @entity637 , than in BAL from PBS-vaccinated. Flow cytometry of lymphocytes from HKY-vaccinated showed 52% of @entity5168 (+) or 56% of CD8(+) cells exhibited cell division after stimulation with HKY, compared to non-stimulated controls (26 or 23%, respectively) or HKY-stimulated cells from PBS-vaccinated (31 or 34%). HKY also induced antibody against @entity375 glucan and mannan with titers 4- or 2-fold, respectively, above that in unvaccinated. Taken together, the results suggested that HKY vaccination induces significant and specific @entity630 type cellular immune responses and antibodies to glucan and mannan.
