Cigarette smoking is a major risk factor in such human diseases as cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. There is little information about the extend of immune alterations and whether it is uniform on all immunologic parameters or not. In order to clarify these issues, Sprague Dawley
,rats were exposed to smoking in acute and chromic manners to have models fortrabbituativeand recovered ratS. Their immune status were asseSsed by variety of assays on three impor-tant immunologic parameters. Macrophages phagocytic power and index and uptake of
bandida albicans in smoking exposed rats. Serum interleukin concentrations and splenic weight' and splenocytes. Acute smoking resulted in statistically significant reduction in phagocytic index ( p < 0.05 ) and interleukin-2 concentration ( P < 0.05 ) which was partially antagonized by opioid antagonist, naloxone. There was no change in splenic weight. and splenocytes histologically. Chronic smoking resulted in statistically significant reduction in phagocytic index of macrophages ( p < 0.05 ) and it was still diminished in recovered rats . Interleukin-2 ioncentrations were also significantly highly reduced ( p < 0.01 ) in chronic smoking , yet it showed sudden increase in recovered rats, but it did not reach the control levels . As regards splenic lymphocytes, chronic smoking induced suppressions of lymphocytic mass and splenic weight: , which did not recover to normal control levels. Finally, the results of this
study showed that, smoking has an immuno-modulatory effect on different parameters of the immune system which differs with the duration of intake and the type of immune cell or parameter affected, it is partially antagonized by naloxone and capable of recovery after cessation of the intake |
