Splenocytes were isolated from vaccinated mice and restimulated in vitro with OVA and SIINFEKL peptide (100 μg ml−1 OVA and 2 μg ml−1 SIINFEKL) for 72 h. Secretion levels of IL-6 (a) and TNF-α (b) within the supernatant of were measured by ELISA. ‘Algel+OVA’ stands for Alhydrogel®+OVA group. Data represent the mean ± s.e.m. from a representative experiment (n = 4 biologically independent samples) of two independent experiments. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Dunnett’s multiple comparisons test. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001; NS, not significant; BMDC, bone marrow derived dendritic cell; ELISA, enzyme-linked immunoassay.