An immunomodulatory peptide derived from the thymus gland, approved in several countries for hepatitis B/C and studied for immune enhancement in cancer and infectious diseases.
A single injection of alpha beta-interferon (alpha beta-IFN) (30000 units/mouse), a major biological modifier of natural killer (NK) cytolytic activity, strongly stimulated NK activity in normal mice, as expected, while the same treatment did not sta…
We report that fetal thymectomy inhibits oogenesis and induces abnormal ovarian differentiation in rhesus monkeys. In utero thymectomy (n = 5) elevated plasma follicle-stimulating hormone (7.8 +/- 1.1 microgram/ml vs. 4.2 +/- 0.5 microgram/ml; P less…
17 thymomas were studied by indirect immunofluorescence for the presence of thymic hormones and antigens of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). The thymoma epithelial cells (specifically identified by their keratin content) contained thymic h…
A radioimmunoassay, developed for thymosin alpha 1, can also be utilized for the quantitation of the intact native polypeptide, prothymosin alpha, which contains the thymosin alpha 1 sequence at its NH2-terminus (Haritos et al., 1984a). The major epi…
The capacity of lymphocytes obtained from healthy young or old volunteers to produce interleukin-2 was measured and the results were compared with other measures of immune function. The in vitro effect of thymosin alpha 1 on interleukin-2 production…
The antibody response to a variety of antigens has been shown to diminish with age. We investigated the capacity for Thymosin Alpha One (T alpha 1) treatment to augment antibody production in tetanus toxoid (TT) and pneumococcal capsular polysacchari…
The effects of Ta-1, a peptide constituent of thymosin fraction 5, were studied on murine autoimmune thyroiditis using two congenic strains of mice, B10.Br (Br) and B10.D2 (D2), which are sensitive and resistant to experimental autoimmune thyroiditis…
A microELISA for the estimation of human serum thymosin alpha 1 is described. In this assay, antibody to thymosin alpha 1 is pre-incubated with the standard or serum at 4 degrees C. Unbound antibody in the liquid-phase then binds with solid-phase thy…
Thymus and thymocytes from calf were extracted under isotonic conditions in the presence of protease inhibitors or under severe denaturing conditions (after quick freezing and thawing in boiling 0.1 M NaCl). The extracts, as well as the medium in whi…
Despite massive immunization programs, influenza remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality for elderly people. This may occur because immune senescent recipients may respond to vaccination with inadequate antibody production. We measured antib…
Thymosin fraction 5 restored the capacity of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) from thymectomized adult guinea pigs sensitized with purified protein derivative (PPD) to produce migration inhibition factor (MIF) as measured in an agarose droplet micr…
This study showed that there are relationships between thymic and adrenal/ovarian endocrine actions. A 4 mg/kg dose of thymosin fraction 5 (TSN5) advanced vaginal opening and elevated estrogen levels. Single estradiol benzoate (EB) injections decreas…
The effects of a synthetic thymosin alpha1 on the azathioprine-sensitivity of spleen cells and on the thymic-like activity of serum from adult thymectomized mice, were observed. Thymosin alpha1 is able to restore the lowered levels of these T-depende…
A radioimmunoassay, using a rabbit antiserum directed against thymosin alpha 1, was employed to detect the presence of crossreacting peptides in rat tissues. Highest concentrations were present in thymus, but thymosin alpha 1 cross-reacting material…
The in vitro incubation of phytohemagglutinin-stimulated peripheral blood lymphocytes with thymosin results in a marked and reproducible increase in production of T-cell growth factor, which is dose dependent and most pronounced in the first 24 hr of…
Immunodeficient dwarfism in Weimaraner dogs was characterized by failure to grow, emaciation, growth hormone (GH) deficiency, decreased lymphocyte blastogenic responsiveness to mitogens, lack of thymus cortex, and recurrent infections usually resulti…
T-cell immunity and serum levels of thymosin alpha 1, beta 2-microglobulin, circulating immune complexes, serum immunoglobulin levels, antibodies to hepatitis surface or core antigen, and to cytomegalovirus, and Epstein-Barr virus were investigated i…