Immune profiles in hepatosplenic schistosomiasis mansoni after surgical treatments.

The hepatosplenic form of schistosomiasis mansoni sometimes induces bleeding in oesophageal varices that requires surgical treatment. Although splenectomy is often necessary these patients rarely present with septic events, a finding that may be related to changes in the immunological system. To investigate the immunological profiles of patients with schistosomiasis, we studied the B- and T-lymphocyte counts and the immunoglobulin A, G and M (IgA, IgG and IgM) levels in patients treated surgically and in those who were not operated on. Patients who underwent distal splenorenal shunt, preserving the spleen, showed significantly increased T-lymphocyte counts compared with healthy controls. The IgM and IgG levels were significantly increased compared with the healthy controls in patients submitted to partial and total splenectomy, respectively. The IgM level also tended to increase in patients who were not operated on compared with the controls. These results suggest that chronic schistosomiasis may influence the immune system.

Effect of granulocyte inhibitory factor on granuloma formation in mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni.

Mononuclear cells from patients infected with Schistosoma mansoni were able to produce a soluble material that inhibited the granulocyte cytotoxicity against schistosomula in a complement-dependent killing assay. This granulocyte inhibitory factor (GIF) appears to exist preformed in the mononuclear cells of patients, but it can also be released in the supernatant after antigenic stimulation (lymphokine-like). Only T lymphocytes were able to mediate the inhibition of granulocyte cytotoxicity against schistosomula in vitro. The treatment of S. mansoni-infected mice with GIF induced a significant decrease in the liver granuloma size.

Effect of corticosteroids and aminophylline on active E-rosette formation in patients with diabetic retinopathy.

The reactivity of lymphocyte that form active E-rosettes to corticosteroids and aminophylline were examined in diabetic retinopathy patients with normal intraocular pressure. Aminophylline induced a significant activation of active E-rosette formation when compared with normal subjects. Similar results were observed when diabetics' lymphocytes were tested with corticosteroids. These drugs appear to induce an increase of quantity of T11-sheep erythrocyte receptors on T cells, suggesting abnormalities in diabetics' lymphocytes reactivity.

Estudo do comportamento dos linfocitos derivados do timo em pacientes com penfigo foliaceo na presenca de levamisol. / Behaviour of T - lymphocytes in patients with foliaceus pemphigus at the presence of levamisole

Foram estudados linfocitos T de pacientes portadores de penfigo foliaceo em relacao a sua capacidade de formar rosaceas "E", diante de concentracoes do imunopotenciador levamisol. O levamisol e uma substancia que estimula formacao de rosaceas de linfocitos T ativos em individuos normais: Os linfocitos de pacientes antes da corticoterapia sistemica nao responderam ao levamisol ja os linfocitos de pacientes em tratamento com corticoides tiveram inibida sua capacidade de formar rosaceas. Esses achados sugerem altecao no metabolismo celular dos linfocitos de pacientes penfigosos devido provavelmente a alguma falha no sistema enzimatico dessas celulas envolvendo a fosfodiesterase do AMPc

Alpha-chain disease, schistosomiasis and toxoplasmosis: a case report in Brazil and follow-up for 5 years.

A case of alpha-chain disease associated with schistosomiasis mansoni and radiological and immunological findings suggestive of toxoplasmosis is reported. This patient has been followed-up for five years and is in clinical remission while taking tetracycline, prednisone and cyclophosphamide. This first report of alpha-chain disease in Brazil emphasizes certain common features of the various report of alpha-chain disease like the low socio-economic background of all individuals, and all living in areas where parasitic infections are endemic. A discussion of the probable etiopathogenesis of the disease is also presented.

[AW23 and AW24 associated with chronic calcifying pancreatitis of alcoholic origin (author's transl)]. / Associação dos antígenos de histocompatibidade AW23 e AW24 com pancreatite crônica calcificante de origem alcoólica.

Determinations of histocompatibility antigens of A and B loci was undertaken in 22 white male patients with chronic calcifying pancreatitis (CCP) of alcoholic etiology and compared to 100 controls. Results were analysed by the kappa2 test with Yates correction. HLA--AW23 and AW24 were significantly more prevalent in patients than in controls and HLA-B8 was absent in all CCP cases. Although the small number of cases is insufficient to allow any definite conclusion, the obtained data suggests the presence of a genetic predisposition to this disease.

["E" rosette formation in "active" T lymphocytes: phenomenon modulated by intracellular level of cyclic AMP and GMP (author's transl)]. / Formação de rosáceas "E" por linfócitos T "ativos": um fenômeno modulado pelo nível intracelular de nucleotídeos cíclicos AMP e GMP.

The rosette formation envolving the binding of sheep red blood cells (SRBC) with active T lymphocytes was activated when the lymphocytes were incubated with levamisole, acetylcholine or carbamylcholine. Similar activation was seen when to the incubation medium was added substances of glucose metabolism (lactate, fumarate or succinate) or triphosphate de adenosina--ATP. The lymphocytes incubation with aminophyline, isoproterenol or 2-4-dinitrofenol--DNP--inhibited the rosette formation. The inhibition promoted by aminophyline was reversed by levamisole, acetylcholine or carbamylcholine, but not when lactate or ATP was used. When the rosette formation inhibition was caused by DNP, the reversion was only possible by ATP and no affect occurred if guanil cyclase activators were added to the incubation medium.

Serological diagnosis of Schistosoma mansoni infection. Conglutinative complement absorption test in human and experimental infections.

The conglutinative complement absorption test, using adult worm antigen (Schistosoma mansoni), was performed on the sera of 100 bilharziasis patients and of 111 non-infected individuals. If the sera that inhibit conglutination when diluted to 1: 40 or more are considered as reactive, the sensitivity of the test is 93.7% (six sera were anticomplementary). No reactive sera were found among the control group. In mice experimentally infected with S. mansoni, specific inhibition of conglutination began about the thirtieth day after exposure, when sexually mature schistosomes, migrating from the liver to the mesenteric vessels, were able to lay eggs.