Effect of vitamin B6 deficiency on an antibody production in mice

To investigate the effects of vitamin B6 (B6) deficiency on an antibody production in BALB/c mice, the production of specific immunoglobulin (Ig) E antibody against dinitrophenylated ovalbumin (DNP-OVA) were measured by the methods of enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. The mice fed on on a B6 deficient diet for 4 weeks were immunized intraperitoneally with DNP-OVA absorbed to aluminum hydroxide gel. The contents of anti DNP-IgE antibodies in sera of B6 deficient mice significantly increased compared to that of control mice fed on a diet containing B6. In addition, Interleukin-4, which was known to induce IgE production in allergic reactions from splenocytes of B6 deficient mice, was approximately four-fold higher than that in control mice. According to the recovery test to the B6 deficient mice, that is feeding the control diet for 21 days, all values in terms of the body, thymus, and spleen weight, total serum protein, IgG, and anti DNP-IgE content, regained almost the same levels as those of control. These results suggest that B6 deficiency in mice would have relation to the stimulation of specific IgE antibody production against DNP-OVA.