Immunological studies in mice following in utero exposure to NiCl 2

Abstract

The effect that NiCl 2 has on the development of immune function in mice was examined in the offspring of dams implanted with mini-osmotic pumps during pregnancy. Time bred C57BL/6J mice were implanted subcutaneously on day 5 of gestation with mini pumps which delivered a total dose of from 9.1 to 73.2 μg/g NiCl 2. The pumps delivered NiCl 2 to the dams through day 19 of gestation. At 8–10 weeks of age the offspring of NiCl 2-dosed dams were evaluated for immune function. No consistent significant alterations were observed between control and treated offspring for the following: lymphoid organ or body weights; the lymphoproliferative response to B or T lymphocyte mitogens; the lymphoproliferative response to allogeneic spleen cells in the mixed lymphocyte reaction; the development of syngeneic tumors; or the primary antibody response to sheep red blood cells. Natural killer (NK) cell activity was reduced in offspring exposed to NiCl 2 in utero; however, the biological relevance of these reductions is questionable because of the failure to demonstrate an increased susceptibility to the B16-F10 syngeneic tumor. The results indicate that under the conditions and doses employed it appears that NiCl 2 does not adversely affect the developing immune system of the mouse.