Cytokine production in saquinavir treated mice

The effects of chronic and acute saquinavir treatment on murine cytokine production were investigated in both plasma and splenocyte cultures. Cytokine plasma levels were below the detection limit in both saquinavir treated mice and in control mice with the exception of IFN-gamma, whose levels were detectable in 15 day treated mice. Saquinavir was found to increase interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) and interleukin-2 (IL-2) production from stimulated splenocytes. Saquinavir also caused a marked reduction of transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) in supernatants of splenocytes cultures. Conversely, interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), interleukin-10 (IL-10) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) production was not modified by drug treatment. In the present paper we hypothesized that this protease inhibitor may be involved in the immunoregulatory cytokine network.