Ascaris suum infection modulates inflammation: Implication of CD4 CD25 Foxp3 T cells and IL-10.

Helminth infections have the ability to modulate host's immune response through mechanisms that allow the chronic persistence of the worms in the host. Here, we investigated the mechanisms involved on the suppressive effect of Ascaris suum infection using a murine experimental model of LPS-induced inflammation. We found that infection with A.

Early stages of Ascaris suum induce airway inflammation and hyperreactivity in a mouse model.

The inflammatory and functional changes that occur in murine lung after infection with 2500 infective Ascaris suum eggs were studied in this work. A sequential influx of neutrophils, mononuclear cells and eosinophils occurred into airways concomitantly with migration of larvae from liver to the lungs. Histological analysis of the lung showed a severe intra-alveolar haemorrhage at the peak of larval migration (day 8) and the most intense inflammatory cell infiltrate on day 14.

PAS-1, a protein affinity purified from Ascaris suum worms, maintains the ability to modulate the immune response to a bystander antigen.

Helminth infections and parasite components have potent immunomodulatory effects on a host's immune system. In the present study, we investigated the effect of PAS-1, a protein component of Ascaris suum adult worms recognized by a monoclonal antibody (MAIP-1), on humoral and cell-mediated responses to a bystander antigen (ovalbumin [OVA]). MAIP-1 recognized only one of the three polypeptide chains of PAS-1, but neutralized the suppressive effect of the whole worm extract on OVA-specific antibody production.

Comparison of different monoclonal antibodies against immunosuppressive proteins of Ascaris suum.

The extract of Ascaris suum suppresses the humoral and cellular immune responses to unrelated antigens in the mouse. In order to further characterize the suppressive components of A. suum, we produced specific monoclonal antibodies which can provide an important tool for the identification of these proteins.