Calorie restriction partially attenuates sickness behavior induced by viral mimetic poly I:C

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Neuroscience
• Gerontology

Background:

• Calorie restriction (CR) is known to extend lifespan and attenuate lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced sickness behaviors.
• CR modulates pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory profiles.
• The effects of CR on viral mimetic-induced responses remain underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of CR on fever and sickness behavior induced by polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly I:C), a viral mimetic.
• To determine if CR attenuates the neuroinflammatory response to poly I:C.

Main Methods:

• Mice were subjected to 50% CR for 28 days.
• Viral immune challenge was induced using poly I:C (5000 µg/kg).
• Core body temperature (Tb), locomotor activity, and microglial density were measured.

Main Results:

• CR partially attenuated poly I:C-induced fever and sickness behavior.
• Control mice showed a 2.02°C Tb increase, while CR mice showed a 0.94°C Tb increase.
• CR reduced microglial density in the hypothalamus, indicating moderate neuroinflammation attenuation.

Conclusions:

• Calorie restriction partially mitigates fever and sickness responses to viral immune challenges.
• The anti-inflammatory effects of CR may underlie its protective role against viral mimetics.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the precise mechanisms involved.