Suppressive effects of aluminum trichloride on the T lymphocyte immune function of rats

Aluminum (Al) has increasingly been used in the daily life, and could cause the change of human health because it can accumulate in the organs. A rat model was thus used to examine potential effect of Al on the immune function. Forty male Wistar rats (5 weeks old) weighed 110-120 g were randomly allocated into four groups and were orally exposed to 0, 64.18, 128.36, and 256.72 mg/kg body weight aluminum trichloride (AlCl3) in drinking water for 120 days. The levels of CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ T lymphocyte, acid non-specific activity esterase (ANAE+) in blood, and interleukin-2 (IL-2) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in serum were determined at the end of experiment. The results showed that the proportions of CD3+, CD4+ T lymphocyte, the ratio of CD4+/CD8+, and the levels of ANAE+, IL-2, and TNF-α were significantly reduced in AlCl3-treated rats, while the proportion of CD8+ T lymphocyte was increased in an AlCl3-dose dependent manner. Our findings indicate that a long term exposure of AlCl3 could suppress the T lymphocyte immune function of rats.