Immunoregulatory Effect of Neocortex in Mice

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Abstract
Immune responses were analyzed after neocortex ablation in mice. The neocortex ablations were performed in inbred mice on the left (ALN) or right hemisphere (ARN) separately. Two months later immunological parameters were tested. The results showed that the mitogenesis induced by Con A, natural killer cell (NK) cytotoxicity, production of IL-1 and IL-2 as well as the reactivity to IL-1 were all suppressed in ALN mice but stimulated in ARN mice compared to sham-operated controls. The primary antibody response to sheep red blood cells (SRBC) was also enhanced in ARN but not ALN mice. These results indicate that there may be a different regulatory effect on the immune system mediated by the different brain hemispheres, a phenomenon named lateralization of brain.