The effects of edible bird's nest on T-lymphocyte proliferation, secondary lymphoid organs, and interleukin-2 production

This study aimed to investigate the immunomodulatory effect of edible bird's nest (EBN) in vitro and in vivo studies. EBN-treated peripheral blood mononuclear cells showed that EBN specifically enhanced the expansion of CD3(+) T-cells. The restoration of lymphocyte subpopulations under the influence of immunosuppressive drug has been successfully recovered in CD3(+) T-cells, not CD45RA(+) B-cells and CD335(+) NK-cells. In addition, oral administration of EBNs in Sprague-Dawley rats revealed their potential to increase the number of peripheral blood T-cells. Our study also demonstrated that EBN treatments affected the numbers of the Peyer's patches, spleen weight and length, and cellularity of the periarteriolar lymphoid sheath. Interestingly, we observed that elevation of serum interleukin-2 (IL-2) had been correlated with the proliferation of T-cells in the animal model. Therefore, these results are essential for developing therapeutic strategies in improving immunity, particularly T-cell homeostasis, under immunosuppressive therapy.

Automated summary

This study investigated the immunomodulatory effect of edible bird's nest (EBN) in vitro and in vivo studies. The results showed that EBN specifically enhanced the expansion of CD3(+) T-cells and restored lymphocyte subpopulations under immunosuppressive drug influence. EBN treatments also increased the number of peripheral blood T-cells in rats and affected the numbers of lymphoid cells in specific areas. The elevation of serum interleukin-2 (IL-2) was correlated with T-cell proliferation. These findings are important for developing therapeutic strategies to improve immunity and T-cell homeostasis under immunosuppressive therapy.