The micro-immunotherapy medicine (MIM) 2LEID-N® was developed to sustain immune response, notably in the framework of respiratory infections. This pilot study investigated the potential effects of one capsule of this MIM, referred to as 2LEID-N-9 throughout the manuscript, containing IL-12 (5 CH), IFN-γ (6 CH), and TNF-α (5 CH). Phagocytosis and surface marker expression were assessed using flow cytometry, and cytokine secretion was assessed by ELISA. Cellular models included human monocyte-derived macrophages, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors, and THP-1 cells. Liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS/MS) was used to detect the actives. Compared with vehicle control, 2LEID-N-9 showed a trend towards the enhanced phagocytic activity of macrophages. In PBMCs, 2LEID-N-9 upregulated the secretion of several cytokines, including IL-2, IL-4, IL-13, IFN-γ, and TNF-α in both basal and CD3/CD28-stimulated conditions. Notably, a tendency towards increased secretion of TNF-α was found in LPS-stimulated THP-1 cells. The presence of the three actives, as assessed by LC-HRMS/MS, combined with the functional data, provide promising exploratory evidence of immunomodulatory effects and tendencies towards the stimulation of innate and adaptive immune cells, warranting further investigation.
Jacques et al. (Thu,) studied this question.