Suppression of experimental allergic neuritis by Cyclosporin-A

Experimental allergic neuritis (EAN) was induced in guinea pigs and rats and treated with Cyclosporin-A (Cy-A). When Cy-A was given prophylactically for 1 month from the time of induction of the disease, it prevented the development of EAN during the course of its administration. When Cy-A was given therapeutically after the onset of neurological signs, it effectively prevented further deterioration. This effect was more marked after 3 weeks' treatment than after only 1 week's treatment. In both regimens, when dosing with Cy-A ceased there was a latent period before clinical signs of EAN developed. This latent period is similar to that seen in the development of EAN in normal control animals and is probably due to the continued presence of antigen at the injection sites. After primary treatment of EAN with Cy-A, animals that relapsed did not respond to further treatment with Cy-A. Histological examination revealed that the nature of the EAN lesions in both groups of animals given Cy-A were not as severe as those seen in control animals. Despite these observations, there was no statistically significant difference between the maximum clinical grades reached by animals in any one group. These experiments suggest that T-cells are important in the development of EAN and that Cy-A interferes with this process by suppressing T-helper cells. They also show that it is possible to influence favourably the course of immune mediated neurological disease.