Repeated allergen consumption impairs intestinal barriers and promotes neurobehavioral pathologies in mice with subclinical cow’s milk allergy

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Presentation Time: 02:15 PM - 03:30 PM
Poster Board Number: B738
Abstract ID: 4730

Presenting Author:
Dilini Ekanayake , Student at Univ. of North Dakota Sch. of Med. and Hlth. Sci.

Abstract:

Cow’s milk and other food allergens are often implicated in behavioral problems in sensitized but tolerant individuals. While the mechanisms are still unclear, we previously showed that male C57BL/6J mice with subclinical cow’s milk allergy (CMA) exhibited depression-like behavior associated with brain neuroinflammation and cortical demyelination after consuming a whey protein-containing diet (WP diet) for 2 weeks. Recently, we also found that adoptively transferred peripheral leukocytes from CMA mice migrated to the dura mater of naïve recipient mice during the duration of the 2-week WP diet. Hypothesizing that consumption of food allergens by subclinically sensitized individuals would cause intestinal damage and promote the trafficking of activated peripheral leukocytes to the dura to adversely affect the brain, we assessed neurobehavioral and intestinal pathologies CMA mice that sensitized to β-lactoglobulin (Bos d 5) and exposed to WP diet for 2 weeks. Behavioral tests indicated that the exploratory activity and short-term memory of CMA mice were significantly lower than controls. Cortical demyelination, microgliosis, and axonal damage were detected in the brain as previously reported. Notably, immunoreactivity for a tight junction protein, claudin 5, was visibly lower in the intestines of CMA mice. Our results suggested that repeated allergen consumption could trigger immune responses by increasing gut permeability in susceptible individuals.