IMMUNOMODULATORY ACTIVITY OF COORDINATION COMPOUNDS OF LOW-MOLECULAR-WEIGHT PEPTIDES WITH IRON AND ZINC IONS

Introduction. Synthetic immunomodulatory drugs are foreign to the body and have a number of side effects. Their alternative is preparations based on endogenous peptides, for example, on thymus peptides. One of the ways to modify natural peptides can be the formation of coordination compounds with ions of biologically active metals. Objective: to investigate the immunotropic activity of coordination compounds of low-molecular-weight immunoactive peptides with iron (II) and zinc ions. Materials and methods. L-series amino acids and amino acid derivatives (Reanal) were used. Coordination compounds were obtained by the interaction of aqueous solutions of dipeptide isoleucyl-tryptophan with metal ions. The effect of the obtained compounds on humoral and cellular immune responses and nonspecific resistance of the organism was evaluated. The humoral immune response was investigated from the effect on the number of antibody-forming cells in the mouse spleen and on antibody titers after immunization with sheep red blood cells. Nonspecific activity was determined by the effect on the intensity of phagocytosis. Results. The use of coordination compounds with iron (II) and zinc ions contributed to the increased formation of antibody-forming cells in the mouse spleen. There was a clear tendency to increase antibody titers against sheep red blood cells after immunization. The coordination compounds increased the magnitude of delayed hypersensitivity reactions and substantially enhanced the activity and intensity of phagocytosis Conclusion. Coordination with biologically active metal ions increases immunotropic activity of low molecular weight peptides. That of low-molecular-weight peptides with iron (II) ion is most effective.