title: Macrophage activation in vivax malaria: fever is associated with increased levels of neopterin and interferon-gamma.
abstract: In order to evaluate the relationship between fever and macrophage activation in vivax malaria, serum interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and urinary neopterin concentrations were determined in Thai adults with Plasmodium vivax parasitaemia. Magnitude of fever, after controlling for parasite density, was found to be positively correlated with both IFN-gamma (r = 0.47) and neopterin (r = 0.57). In the 26 febrile patients, neopterin excretion increased further during the first two days of chemotherapy (P = 0.0002). Mean neopterin values for both groups had fallen to within the normal range by the sixth day post-treatment. Thus, the fever of vivax malaria was associated with IFN-gamma induced macrophage activation, as reflected by neopterin excretion.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology and Biochemistry, Armed Forces Research Institute for Medical Sciences, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Teja-Isavadharm
authors.forename: H K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Webster
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001708:Biopterins / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000652:urine; D005334:Fever / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood*; D008262:Macrophage Activation / Q000276:immunology*; D016780:Malaria, Vivax / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D008297:Male; D019798:Neopterin; D010966:Plasmodium vivax / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001708:Biopterins; D019798:Neopterin; D007371:Interferon-gamma