Effects of boron on the proliferation, apoptosis and immune function of splenic lymphocytes through ERα and ERβ

This experiment aimed to investigate the role of ERα and ERβ in boron's effect on splenic lymphocyte of rat. After inhibition of ERα and ERβ using MPP and PHTPP, the effects of 0.4 mmol/L boron on the splenic CD4+/CD8+ T-cell ratio, lymphocyte proliferation rate, IFN-γ concentration and PCNA protein expression disappeared. Furthermore, after inhibiting ERβ with PHTPP alone, the decreasing effects of 40 mmol/L boron on the splenic CD8+ T-cell proportion, lymphocyte proliferation rate, the concentrations of IgG and cytokines, as well as the expression of Bcl-2 also disappeared. However, when ERα was inhibited by MPP alone, the effect of 40 mmol/L boron on splenic lymphocyte was unchanged. The results suggest that ERα mainly mediate the effects of low-dose boron (0.4 mmol/L) on splenic T-cell subsets, lymphocyte proliferation and apoptosis, and immune function, while ERβ may mediate the effects of both low-dose and high-dose boron (40 mmol/L) on splenic lymphocytes.</p

Different Lipopolysaccharide Branched-Chain Amino Acids Modulate Porcine Intestinal Endogenous β‑Defensin Expression through the Sirt1/ERK/90RSK Pathway

Nutritional induction of endogenous antimicrobial peptide expression is considered a promising approach to inhibit the outgrowth and infection of pathogenic microbes in mammals. The present study investigated possible regulation of porcine epithelial β-defensins in response to branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) in vivo and in vitro. BCAA treatment increased relative mRNA expression of jejunal and ileal β-defensins in weaned piglets. In IPEC-J2 cells, isoleucine, leucine, and valine could stimulate β-defensin expression, possibly associated with stimulation of ERK1/2 phosphorylation. Inhibition of Sirt1 and ERK completely blocked the activation of ERK and 90RSK protein by isoleucine, simultaneously decreasing defensin expression. BCAA stimulate expression of porcine intestinal epithelial β-defensins with isoleucine the most, potent possibly through activation of the Sirt1/ERK/90RSK signaling pathway. The β-defensins regulation of lipopolysaccharide was related with an ERK-independent pathway. BCAA modulation of endogenous defensin might be a promising approach to enhance disease resistance and intestinal health in young animals and children