The current study was carried out to investigate the effects of dietary restriction of energy and feed intake on growth performance, blood biochemical profiles and white blood cell(leucocyte) differential count, and the expression of cytokines including IL-4, IL-10 and TNF-alpha in SD rats. A total of forty, 7-wk-old male SD rats were randomly allotted into five groups consisted of control(CON), ER85(85% energy restriction), ER70(70% energy restriction), FI85(85% feed intake restriction) and FI70(85% feed intake restriction) for 8 wk. The results obtained from this study were as follows;
5. There was no remarkably change in mRNA expression of TNF-α, iNOS and IL-4 in the thymus, brain, liver and spleen of SD rats in response to the restriction of energy and feed intake.
In conclusion, energy and feed intake restriction in 15wk-old rats tended to be less significant to affect immune function, however increase in WBC, albumin and IL-4 expression in response to energy restriction may have a positive impact on the improvement of immunity in SD rats.