Elevation of corticosteroid-binding globulin in Obese strain (OS) chickens: possible implications for the disturbed immunoregulation and the development of spontaneous autoimmune thyroiditis

Journal Article · Thu May 15 00:00:00 EDT 1986 · J. Immunol.; (United States)

OSTI ID:5072533

Faessler, R; Schauenstein, K; Kroemer, G; Schwarz, S; Wick, G

Basal plasma levels of corticosterone and corticosteroid-binding globulin (CBG) have been investigated in Obese strain (OS) chickens afflicted with spontaneous autoimmune thyroiditis (SAT). Corticosterone was determined radioimmunologically, and CBG by using a highly sensitive radioligand saturation assay. OS chickens displayed total corticosterone levels not different from healthy normal White Leghorn (NWL) chickens. CBG, however, was found to be twice as high in OS chickens as compared with their healthy counterparts, irrespective of sex or age. This quantitative difference in the CBG level is not compensated for by either altered affinity or specificity of the molecule. Furthermore, no differences were found in the response of OS and NWL lymphocytes to the suppressive effect of glucocorticoids in vitro. It was therefore assumed that OS animals are deficient in free, hormonally active corticosterone. An additional indication for such a diminished glucocorticoid tonus was that in vivo treatment of OS chickens with glucocorticoid hormones, thus increasing the free and active hormone fraction, normalizes the T cell hyperreactivity and significantly reduces thyroid infiltration. Possible pathophysiological implications of a diminished glucocorticoid tonus for spontaneous autoimmunity, as well as possible explanations for the beneficial effects of glucocorticoid treatment on the development of SAT, are discussed.

• Research Organization: Univ. of Innsbruck, Austria
• OSTI ID: 5072533
• Journal Information: J. Immunol.; (United States), Vol. 136:10
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
CHICKENS
IMMUNITY
CORTICOSTERONE
RADIOIMMUNOASSAY
GLOBULINS
RADIOASSAY
THYROIDITIS
PATHOLOGY
LYMPHOCYTES
ADRENAL HORMONES
ANIMAL CELLS
ANIMALS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIRDS
BLOOD
BLOOD CELLS
BODY FLUIDS
CONNECTIVE TISSUE CELLS
CORTICOSTEROIDS
DISEASES
ENDOCRINE DISEASES
FOWL
GLUCOCORTICOIDS
HORMONES
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
IMMUNOASSAY
IMMUNOLOGY
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS
KETONES
LEUKOCYTES
MATERIALS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PREGNANES
PROTEINS
RADIOIMMUNOLOGY
SOMATIC CELLS
STEROID HORMONES
STEROIDS
TRACER TECHNIQUES
VERTEBRATES
550901* - Pathology- Tracer Techniques
550201 - Biochemistry- Tracer Techniques