Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 28, 2026

Studying Chronic Exposure of Mice to Ultraviolet B Radiation
Published on: August 19, 2025
Mechanisms underlying UV-induced immune suppression: implications for sunscreen design
Stephen E Ullrich1, Margaret L Kripke, Honnavara N Ananthaswamy
1Department of Immunology, University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Texas Medical Center, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, TX 77030, USA. sullrich@mdanderson.org
Abstract:
The ultraviolet (UV) radiation present in sunlight is immune-suppressive. Recently we showed that solar-simulated UV radiation (UVA + UVB; 295-400 nm), applied after immunization, suppressed immunological memory and the elicitation of delayed-type hypersensitivity to the common opportunistic pathogen, Candida albicans. Further, we found that wavelengths in the UVA region of the solar spectrum (320-400 nm), devoid of UVB, were equally effective in activating immune suppression as UVA + UVB radiation. Here we report on the mechanisms involved. No immune suppression was found in UV-irradiated mice injected with monoclonal anti-interleukin (IL)-10 antibody, or mice exposed to solar-simulated UV radiation and injected with recombinant IL-12. Antigen-specific suppressor T cells were found in the spleens of mice exposed to UVA + UVB radiation. Applying liposomes containing bacteriophage T4N5 to the skin of mice exposed to solar-simulated UVA + UVB radiation or mice exposed to UVA radiation blocked immune suppression, demonstrating an essential role for UV-induced DNA damage in the suppression of established immune reactions. These findings indicate that UV radiation activates similar immunological pathways to suppress the induction, or the elicitation, of the immune response.
Related Concept Videos
Mutations
Chromosomal Alterations Are Large-Scale Mutations
While point mutations are changes in a single nucleotide in...
Mutations
Role of Skin in Vitamin D Synthesis
The solar UV B rays (290-315 nm) are absorbed by the skin, and 7-dehydrocholesterol (provitamin D3) photolyzes it to previtamin D3, which undergoes a rapid transformation to vitamin D3(cholecalciferol).
Pigmentation
Melanin occurs in two primary forms: eumelanin that provides black and brown pigment and pheomelanin that provides red color. Dark-skinned individuals produce more melanin than those with pale...
Nucleotide Excision Repair
Cells are regularly exposed to mutagens—factors in the environment that can damage DNA and generate mutations. UV radiation is one of the most common mutagens and is estimated to introduce a significant number of changes in DNA. These include bends or kinks in the structure, which can block DNA replication or transcription. If these errors are not fixed, the damage can cause mutations, which in turn can result in cancer or disease depending on which sequences are...
Nucleotide Excision Repair
