Immune Activity of BCG Infected Mouse Macrophages Treated with a Novel Recombinant Mouse Lactoferrin

Lactoferrin has been investigated for its adjuvant action to boost the BCG vaccine. Previous studies demonstrated that lactoferrin (LF) enhanced efficacy of the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine to protect mice against the virulent Erdman Mycobacterium tuberculosis challenge. The studies here investigate the hypothesis that a novel CHO-derived recombinant mouse LF can modify cytokine production and antigen presentation molecules on macrophages. The mouse LF (rmLF) was examined for effects on bone marrow derived macrophage (BMM) activities when cultured with BCG. Comparisons were made to CHO-derived recombinant human LF (rhLF). Inflammatory cytokine responses were investigated, as were antigen presentation and associated co-stimulatory molecules. Cytokine responses were subsequently measured when these cells were co-cultured with naïve or BCG sensitized CD4+ lymphocytes. While overall responses were similar between mouse, human, and bovine forms, the homologous rmLF treated infected BMMs showed unique activation patterns of cytokine production. These results indicate that species-specific LF can have different effects on mouse macrophages exposed to BCG, thus potentially affecting adjuvant activity when used in models of vaccination in mice.