Effect of L1210 leukemia on the susceptibility of mice to Candida albicans infections

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine whether animals bearing L1210 leukemia were more susceptible to candida infection in the absence of immunosuppression and to determine also if the L1210 cells suppressed the imflammatory response of the animal host. Systemic infection was studied by intravenous injection of Candida albicans and checking for the number of candida organisms cultured from the blood and the kidneys. Localized infection was studied by intramuscular injection of C. albicans into the thighs and measuring the changes in the thigh size. Compared with tumor-free controls, the intravenous injection resulted in higher counts of C. albicans from the blood and the kidneys of tumor-bearing animals. No significant difference in the localized swelling was noted between tumor- and nontumor-bearing mice with respect to intramuscular injection of C. albicans. The results thus indicate that L1210 leukemia increases susceptibility of tumor-bearing animals to systemic candida infection. L1210 cells were shown to reduce the accumulation of neutrophils and to suppress the inflammatory reaction elicited by C. albicans.