TY - JOUR
T1 - Modulation of select immune responses by dietary capsaicin
AU - Yu, Rina
AU - Park, Jeong Woo
AU - Kurata, Tadao
AU - Erickson, Kent L
PY - 1998
Y1 - 1998
N2 - Capsaicin (CAP) is the spicy principle of hot peppers that has been used as a food additive, preservative, and medicine. In this study, we investigated the effect of dietary CAP on immune status and selected immune responses. BALB/c mice were divided into 5 groups and fed diets with either 0, 5, 20, 50 or 100 ppm CAP for 3 weeks. The parameters measured with lymphocytes included mitogen-induced proliferation, plaque-forming cell number, and total serum immunoglobulin levels. In spleen cells of mice fed 20 ppm CAP there was a greater T-cell mitogen induced, lymphocyte proliferative response. In addition, the number of antibody-producing B cells and serum IgG and IgM levels increased in mice fed 20 ppm CAP as compared to the control with no CAP. The effect of dietary CAP on macrophage activity was assessed by phagocytosis and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) production. Dietary CAP had no effect on phagocytic activity by peritoneal macrophages, but the levels of secreted TNFα increased in the groups fed 20 ppm CAP compared to the control. These results suggest that dietary CAP may differentially enhance immune status as well as select immune functions. That is in contrast with previous studies that show immunosuppression observed after CAP injection.
AB - Capsaicin (CAP) is the spicy principle of hot peppers that has been used as a food additive, preservative, and medicine. In this study, we investigated the effect of dietary CAP on immune status and selected immune responses. BALB/c mice were divided into 5 groups and fed diets with either 0, 5, 20, 50 or 100 ppm CAP for 3 weeks. The parameters measured with lymphocytes included mitogen-induced proliferation, plaque-forming cell number, and total serum immunoglobulin levels. In spleen cells of mice fed 20 ppm CAP there was a greater T-cell mitogen induced, lymphocyte proliferative response. In addition, the number of antibody-producing B cells and serum IgG and IgM levels increased in mice fed 20 ppm CAP as compared to the control with no CAP. The effect of dietary CAP on macrophage activity was assessed by phagocytosis and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) production. Dietary CAP had no effect on phagocytic activity by peritoneal macrophages, but the levels of secreted TNFα increased in the groups fed 20 ppm CAP compared to the control. These results suggest that dietary CAP may differentially enhance immune status as well as select immune functions. That is in contrast with previous studies that show immunosuppression observed after CAP injection.
KW - Capsaicin
KW - Hot pepper
KW - Immune response
KW - Tumor necrosis factor
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M3 - Article
C2 - 9565827
AN - SCOPUS:0031960979
VL - 68
SP - 114
EP - 119
JO - Internationale Zeitschrift fur Vitaminforschung. International journal of vitamin research. Journal international de vitaminologie
JF - Internationale Zeitschrift fur Vitaminforschung. International journal of vitamin research. Journal international de vitaminologie
SN - 0300-9831
IS - 2
ER -