Dardenne M, Boukaiba N, Gagnerault M C, Homo-Delarche F, Chappuis P, Lemonnier D, Savino W
CNRS URA 1461, Hôpital Necker, Paris, France.
Clin Immunol Immunopathol. 1993 Feb;66(2):127-35. doi: 10.1006/clin.1993.1016.
A multiparametric study of the thymus was performed in normal aging mice (12-15 months old) submitted to a mild oral zinc supplementation during 3-6 months as compared to age-matched control mice. First, this study demonstrated that in rodents, zinc levels are significantly reduced with aging and can be restored to values close to those observed in young animals after 6 months of zinc supplementation. Second, our data showed that oral zinc administration stimulates thymus growth and partially restores the microenvironmental as well as lymphoid compartments of the organ. Regarding thymic endocrine function, a significant increase in thymulin levels and a concomitant decrease in plasma thymulin inhibitors were observed, suggesting that the age-related decline of thymic function might at least partially be due to extrinsic factors, such as zinc deficiency. The total number of thymic lymphocytes was consistently increased, without significant changes in CD4/CD8 defined thymocyte subsets. Finally, structural changes of the thymus epithelium were also detected, including the disappearance of epithelial cysts frequently observed in old animals, reappearance of a normal pattern of the thymic epithelial cell network, and a decrease in the extracellular matrix network. Taken together, these data suggest that aging-related physiological zinc deficiency induces some relevant changes in thymus structure and function which can be partially corrected by a mild oral zinc supplementation.
对12至15月龄正常衰老小鼠进行了一项多参数胸腺研究，这些小鼠在3至6个月期间接受轻度口服锌补充，与年龄匹配的对照小鼠相比。首先，这项研究表明，在啮齿动物中，锌水平会随着衰老而显著降低，在补充锌6个月后可恢复到接近年轻动物的水平。其次，我们的数据显示，口服锌可刺激胸腺生长，并部分恢复该器官的微环境以及淋巴区室。关于胸腺内分泌功能，观察到胸腺素水平显著升高，同时血浆胸腺素抑制剂减少，这表明与年龄相关的胸腺功能下降可能至少部分归因于外在因素，如锌缺乏。胸腺淋巴细胞总数持续增加，而CD4/CD8定义的胸腺细胞亚群无显著变化。最后，还检测到胸腺上皮的结构变化，包括老年动物中常见的上皮囊肿消失、胸腺上皮细胞网络正常模式的重新出现以及细胞外基质网络的减少。综上所述，这些数据表明，与衰老相关的生理性锌缺乏会引起胸腺结构和功能的一些相关变化，轻度口服锌补充可部分纠正这些变化。
