The Effects of Orally Applied and Systemic Interferon and Cytokines on Hormonal and Host Defense Mechanisms of Virus-Infected Mice.

Abstract : This report presents data that orally applied IFN can increase the levels of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) sulfate in very young and old-age (20 months) mice and protect mice from Semliki Forest Virus infections. Large numbers of mice/group (42) were needed to show statistically significant increases in the splenic antibody plaque-forming response to sheep red blood cells. These increases were in the two to four fold range. Thus the biological significance needs to be proven. In other studies, DHEA and its more potent form, 5-androstene-3B, 17B-diol (AED) were shown to decrease ocular inflammatory responses and mortality, following ocular challenge with herpes simplex virus. Overall, the data suggest that oral IFN could help to increase DHEA-mediated responses during old age, and to modulate virus infections and immune responses. In addition, DHEA and AED could possibly be used to help decrease the inflammatory response during ocular infections.