Effect of exogenous IL-12 on lung weight, disease severity (lung weight increase), neutrophil:macrophage ratios in lung lesions, and chlamydial lung burden after intranasal inoculation of C. psittaci B577
| Lung Weight Day 12 (mg)a | % Lung Weight Increase Day 12a | Neutrophil:Macrophage Ratio Day 4a | Neutrophil:Macrophage Ratio Day 12a | C. psittaci B577 (IFU/lung) Day 12b | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Control | 273.1 ± 109.5c | 158.9 ± 103.8 | 1.96 ± 1.40 | 0.25 ± 0.11 | 11.00 ± 4.13 × 105c |
| (n = 16) | (n = 16) | (n = 4) | (n = 4) | (n = 4) | |
| +IL-12 | 182.1 ± 43.0a | 72.6 ± 40.7a | 0.51 ± 0.12b | 0.33 ± 0.16 | 2.89 ± 2.92 × 105∗∗ |
| (n = 16) | (n = 16) | (n = 4) | (n = 4) | (n = 4) |
a After inoculation of 1.9 × 106 IFU C. psittaci B577.
b After inoculation of 2.7 × 105 IFU C. psittaci B577.
c Values are mean ± SD from a representative experiment; lung weights of mock-infected BALB/c mice are 105.5 ± 6.5 mg.
a p = 0.016
b p = 0.021