Immunostimulation by vitamin C.

Abstract

A review of the literature shows that vitamin C undoubtedly has a positive effect on some mechanisms of the natural resistance against infections as well as on the immune response. It is generally accepted that vitamin C increases the chemotaxis of granulocytes and of macrophages. There is also ample evidence that vitamin C increases the phagocytic activity of granulocytes as well as of macrophages. As to the effect of vitamin C on the immune response, the available data allow the conclusion that vitamin C is necessary for the induction of delayed hypersensitivity, i.e. cellular immunity. Its effect on the antibody production appears, however, to be minimal or none. In our previous in vivo studies we obtained the results which were consistent with the conclusion that high doses of vitamin C increase the efficiency of immunization with a human cell culture rabies vaccine in guinea-pigs. The purpose of this study was to establish whether relatively low doses (10 mg/kg body weight) of vitamin C have a similar effect as megadoses (100 mg/kg body weight). We observed that the efficiency of immunization with the human diploid cell culture rabies vaccine (Mérieux/Lyon) was better in the group of guinea-pigs treated with the vaccine plus vitamin C (10 mg/kg body weight) than in the group treated with the vaccine alone. The difference in the number of survivors in both groups of animals was statistically not significant, but considering the factor of repetition (a similar result in repeated experiments) we nevertheless conclude that vitamin C acts in the doses used as an immunopotentiator.