Case Study That Investigates the Role Environmental Toxins Play in Flu Infection (41.7)

Abstract

Abstract There is growing evidence that environmental pollutants can cause cells in the body to work differently than normal, changing the immune system's ability to respond to respiratory infections. During infection with Influenza A virus, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD; a dioxin and environmental toxin) enhances neutrophil recruitment and accumulation in the lungs, leading to detrimental inflammation. While neutrophils are necessary in the resolution of infection, excessive neutrophil recruitment generally has adverse effects. Within the first activity of this unit, students will gain a better understanding of the difference between the innate versus the adaptive immune response by completing cell differential counts for patients in various stages of flu infection. After graphing and analyzing cell differential data, students will explore how computers process the same data using flow cytometry. Next, students will investigate how TCDD plays a role during flu infection in laboratory mice. Students will apply what they learn with the mouse model to research dioxin issues in the environment and the subsequent effects on the human population. In culmination, students will write and perform a Public Service Announcement (PSA) regarding the immune response to the flu and the role that environmental toxins, such as TCDD, play in these infections.