In recent years, interleukin-2, a lymphokine produced by antigen or mitogenstimulated lymphocytes, has been intensively with the development of immunooncology and chemoimmunotherapy of the malignant tumor.
Interleukin-2 mediates antitumor effect by stimulating the proliferation of helper and cytotoxic T cells, augmenting the cytolytic activities of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes and differentiating T-lymphocytes into a lymphokine-activated killer cell in vivo. Thus interleukin-2 induces the therapeutic, effects on various sarcoma and carcinoma and regresses the pulmonary, hepatic and peritoneal metastases of various tumors. Although interleukin-2 is very effective for the treatment of various malignancy, it develops many side effects including fever, chill, malaise, mental confusion, diarrhea, vomiting and oliguria and causes pulmonary, hepatic and renal toxicities. Especially interleukin-2 results in increase of capillary permeability with weight gain, pulmonary edema, and ascites.
In this experiment, the author studied the effect of interleukin-2 on the mouse liver, histochemically observing the changes in the activities of alkaline phosphatase, acid phosphatase and adenosine triphosphatase. Male mice, DDY strain, weighing 20gm, were used as experimental animals. The experimental animals were sacrificed at 3, 6, 12, 24 and 48 hours after intraperitoneal administration of two milions unit of interleukin-2 per kilogram of body weight. The specimens obtained from the liver were fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin solution for 24 hours at 4C and sliced at 16m thickness in a frozen cryostat. The activities of alkaline phosphatase and acid phosphatase were observed by the Gomori´s method and the activity of adenosine triphosphatase was observed by the Wachstein and Meisel´s method for histochemical study.
The results obtained were as follows.
1. The acid phosphatase activity was strong positive at 12 hours and 24 hours groups in the central and portal zones of the liver lobules, but weak positive and moderate positive at 48 hours group in the central and portal zones of the liver lobules, respectively.
2. The alkaline phosphatase activity was weak positive at 6 hours and 12 hours groups and moderate positive at 48 hours group in the central and portal zone of the liver lobules.
3. The adenosine triphosphatase activity was trace positive in the central zone and weak positive in the portal-zone of the liver lobules at 6 hours group but moderate positive at 48 hours group in the central and portal zones of the liver lobules. Consequently, it is suggested that interleukin-2 induce degenerative changes of
the hepatocytes of the mouse, but it is recovered with time.
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