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The Role Of Homeostatic Imbalance In The Reported Immunomodulation Of T-2 Toxin, Michael Jay Taylor

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

T-2 toxin (T-2), produced by the genus Fusarium, is a cytotoxic trichothecene mycotoxin, a feed contaminant, and has been shown to be immunomodulatory. It is suspected that T-2-associated immunomodulation is mediated partly through the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. The presence of endotoxin, a bacterial product capable of activating the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis as well as the levels of several hormones, also associated with activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, were determined in both vehicle- and toxin-treated animals. Endotoxemia was evident twenty-four hours after a single oral exposure to T-2. Blood levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone and corticosterone, parameters of the stress response, also increased …