FIG. 4.
Protection in BALB/c mice treated with pLXSN/mIL-12-transfected J774 cells. Mice were infected with 60 arthroconidia via a pulmonary route and then treated with 2 × 106 IL-12-transduced or vector-transduced J774 cells via the i.p. route. A third group of mice received saline alone. Treatments were begun 6 h after pulmonary challenge and repeated on days 1, 4, and 7 after challenge. Twelve days postchallenge, the mice were sacrificed and evaluated for C. immitis CFU in tissues. Bars depict means ± standard errors obtained in two experiments involving a total of 22 mice given saline alone, 23 mice treated with vector-transduced J774 cells, and 21 mice given IL-12-transduced J774 cells.