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Suppressive Effects of Subchronic Aluminum Overload on the Splenic Immune Function May Be Related to Oxidative Stress in Mice

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Abstract

Aluminum (Al) is widely used in daily life and was recently recognized as a possible source of human intoxication because of its ability to accumulate in organs. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of subchronic Al overload on splenic immune function in mice. Furthermore, we have preliminarily explored its mechanism. The Al overload model was established via intragastric administration of Al once a day for 60 days. The body weight, spleen weight, and splenic coefficient were determined. The concentration of Al in the spleen was detected by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. The cytokine mRNA expression of spleen tissues was detected by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Biochemical methods were used to detect superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents in spleen tissue. Body weight, spleen weight, and cytokine mRNA expression of spleen tissues were significantly reduced by Al overload. SOD and GSH-Px activities were also decreased, while the MDA content was increased in subchronic Al overload mice. The results indicate that subchronic exposure to aluminum trichloride (AlCl3) would result in Al accumulation, which suppressed spleen immune function through a mechanism related to oxidative stress.

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Acknowledgments

The International Science Editing, Ireland, is gratefully acknowledged for editing the manuscript. This work was supported by a grant from the Third Military Medical University (grant number 2012XJQ07) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 81302413).

Conflict of Interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. The authors declared that they have no financial and personal relationships with other people or the organizations that can inappropriately influence their work. There is no professional or other personal interest of any nature or kind in any product, service, and/or company.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Occupational Health, Third Military Medical University, No. 30 Gaotanyan Road, Shapingba District, Chongqing, 400038, China

    Xue Luo, Qinlong Ma, Min Zhong, Peng Gao, Zhengping Yu & Yanwen Zhang

  2. Institute of Tropical Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China

    Xue Luo

  3. Department of Pharmacy, The Eighth Hospital of Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710068, China

    Shujie Jia

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  1. Xue Luo
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  2. Shujie Jia
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  3. Qinlong Ma
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  4. Min Zhong
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  6. Zhengping Yu
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  7. Yanwen Zhang
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Correspondence to Yanwen Zhang.

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Luo, X., Jia, S., Ma, Q. et al. Suppressive Effects of Subchronic Aluminum Overload on the Splenic Immune Function May Be Related to Oxidative Stress in Mice. Biol Trace Elem Res 157, 249–255 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-014-9888-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-014-9888-8

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