Cigarette smoke causes inhibition of the immune response to intratracheally administered antigens

Chronic inhalation of cigarette smoke in rats preferentially inhibited the plaque-forming cell (PFC) response of lung-associated lymph nodes (LALN) to sheep red blood cells (SRBC), compared to anatomically distant lymph nodes. Inhibition of the antibody response in LALN of smoke-exposed animals was first detected at 21 weeks of smoke inhalation and was well established by the 27th week of smoke exposure. After prolonged exposure (> 34 weeks) to cigarette smoke, similar smoke-induced changes in PFC response took place in other lymphoid tissues as well. Cigarette smoke affected the response of LALN cells to a T cell-dependent antigen (SRBC). Exposure to cigarette smoke, however, did not alter the relative percentages of W313-positive (T cells) or Ig-positive (B cells) cells, nor did it alter the relative percentages of T cell subsets as scored by their surface phenotypes, i.e., T helper (W325+) or T suppressor/cytotoxic (OX-8+) cells. The percentage of phagocytic cells and the accessory cell functions of macrophages remained comparable between sham and smoke-exposed animals. Exposure to cigarette smoke did not significantly alter the response of LALN cells to T cell mitogens (concanavalin A and phytohemagglutinin). However, response to a T cell-independent antigen trinitrophenyl Brucella abortus was also significantly reduced. These results show that cigarette exposure in the rat results in a decreased antibody response and this exposure to cigarette smoke may primarily affect the B cell function.