title: Prevention of recrudescent malaria in nude mice by thymic grafting or by treatment with hyperimmune serum.
abstract: Nude mice died when infected with the normally avirulent malarial parasite Plasmodium berghei yoelii. Furthermore, malaria recrudesced in Nu/Nu mice after the termination of acute disease by treatment with clindamycin. Recrudescence was not observed in Nu/Nu mice that had been grafted with thymic tissue or treated with hyperimmune serum. Mice mad B cell deficient by treatment with anti-mu-chain serum also died when infected with P. berghei yoelii. The data suggest that a crucial role of the thymus in preventing recrudescent malaria in this model system is to provide a helper function in the production of protective antibody.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D002981:Clindamycin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired; D007116:Immunization, Passive; D008288:Malaria / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D010962:Plasmodium berghei; D012008:Recurrence; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000637:transplantation*; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
chemical_list: D002981:Clindamycin