The Effects of Vitamin Deficiencies on Some Physiological Factors of Importance in Resistance to Infection

Abstract

Summary Male white rats were maintained on a well defined diet deficient in niacin and tryptophane, and various physiological factors of resistance to infection were studied. Adequate inanition and ad libitum control animals were included in the investigation. The following physiological factors were studied: (1) cellular composition of the peripheral blood, (2) complement activity, (3) cellular migration in inflammation, (4) cellular composition of the exudate in inflammation, (5) leukotaxine activity, and (6) cellular composition of bone marrow. The following observations were made from these studies: no significant difference was noted in the total number of erythrocytes and leukocytes per mm3 of blood in the vitamin deficient, inanition and ad libitum control groups.the differential cell counts of the blood film preparations suggested a percentage increase in polymorphonuclear leukocytes in both the niacin-tryptophane deficient animals and the inanition control rats. In the blood specimens of most of these animals, a slight reduction in the percentage of lymphocytes was evident.complement activity could not be demonstrated in the sera of the niacin-tryptophane deficient rats even though amounts sixteen times greater than those of the ad libitum controls were employed.cellular migration to an inflamed area was considerably reduced in the niacin-tryptophane deficient and inanition control animals as compared with ad libitum controls.a relative granulocytosis and lymphopenia were observed in the exudates removed from the inflamed areas of the inanition and niacintryptophane deficient animals as compared with the exudates from the ad libitum control rats.no alteration in capillary permeability, as measured by the Menkin dye accumulation technique, was noted even though significant differences in cellular migration occurred.the bone marrow preparation made from the tibia of the inanition control rats presented a lymphopenia as compared with the ad libitum control smears. The bone marrow of the niacintryptophane deficient rats presented a similar picture.