[Effect of central and peripheral estrogen administration on the indices of immune homeostasis]

The effect of high (50 micrograms) and low (2.5 micrograms) doses of diethylstilbestrol propionate (DES) oil solution injected into the CSF and intramuscularly was studied on non-inbred albino male rats. The drug was administered four times with 5 to 6 days' intervals. At the 4th day after the last DES injection the animals were immunized with the sheep red blood cells. The animals under study were killed and the state of their genital organs (testicles and prostatas) was examined. Immunity was evaluated according to the blast-transformation response of the peripheral blood lymphocytes, stimulated by phyto-hemagglutinin and Con A in accordance with the nucleus-containing splenocyte (NCS) and the antibody-forming cell (AFC) number, as well as by the rosette-forming cell (RFC) per cent content in the spleen. It was found that high and low DES doses exert a pronounced effect on the genital organs of the animals. Large doses of the drug affect the immune homeostasis by decreasing blast-transforming lymphocyte ability and NSC number simultaneously with a sharp AFC number and RFC per cent rising. Low DES doses did not influence the immunity indices.