Jurczak Magdalena, Kaczmarek Joanna, Kowalewska-Pietrzak Magdalena, Druszczynska Magdalena
Department of Immunology and Infectious Biology, Institute of Microbiology, Biotechnology and Immunology, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland.
The Bio-Med-Chem Doctoral School of the University of Lodz and Lodz Institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Lodz, Poland.
Arch Immunol Ther Exp (Warsz). 2025 Mar 18;73(1). doi: 10.2478/aite-2025-0007. eCollection 2025 Jan 1.
Studies on the bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, traditionally used against tuberculosis, indicate its potential benefit in protecting against infections. The vaccine's ability to broadly activate the immune system suggests its potential to bolster non-specific immunity, which could be crucial for combating respiratory pathogens. This study aimed to evaluate the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression of interferon (IFN)-α, IFN-β, and IFN-γ as well as the secretion of these cytokines in whole blood co-stimulated cultures with BCG and antigens of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) from BCG-vaccinated Polish children who have been infected or uninfected with RSV and/or SARS-CoV-2. Significant differences were observed in the secretion and mRNA expression of IFN-α and IFN-γ in response to RSV antigens in all groups of children studied. When cultures were conducted in the presence of SARS-CoV-2 antigens, live BCG did not induce increased IFN-α secretion compared with cultures stimulated with these antigens alone. However, enhanced secretion was observed for IFN-γ, and no such relationship was observed for mRNA expression. Furthermore, discrepancies between IFN-β secretion and mRNA expression were observed, suggesting that IFN protein secretion can also be controlled at the translational or posttranslational level. The data from our studies indicate that BCG vaccination may modulate the IFN response to viral challenges with SARS-CoV-2 and RSV, suggesting a potential immunoregulatory role.
对传统上用于预防结核病的卡介苗（BCG）疫苗的研究表明，其在预防感染方面具有潜在益处。该疫苗广泛激活免疫系统的能力表明其具有增强非特异性免疫的潜力，这对于对抗呼吸道病原体可能至关重要。本研究旨在评估接种卡介苗的波兰儿童全血共刺激培养物中干扰素（IFN）-α、IFN-β和IFN-γ的信使核糖核酸（mRNA）表达以及这些细胞因子的分泌情况，这些儿童已感染或未感染呼吸道合胞病毒（RSV）和/或严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）。在所有研究的儿童组中，观察到对RSV抗原的IFN-α和IFN-γ分泌及mRNA表达存在显著差异。当在存在SARS-CoV-2抗原的情况下进行培养时，与仅用这些抗原刺激的培养物相比，活卡介苗并未诱导IFN-α分泌增加。然而，观察到IFN-γ分泌增强，且mRNA表达未观察到这种关系。此外，观察到IFN-β分泌与mRNA表达之间存在差异，表明IFN蛋白分泌也可在翻译或翻译后水平受到控制。我们研究的数据表明，卡介苗接种可能调节对SARS-CoV-2和RSV病毒挑战的IFN反应，提示其具有潜在的免疫调节作用。
