Serum interferon activity of patients with leishmaniasis.
Serum from a significant proportion of 29 cutaneous and 12 mucocutaneous leishmaniasis patients exhibited interferon activity in a cytopathic assay: positive tests were obtained for 24.1% and 41.7% of the patients, respectively. Similar positive frequencies were observed in other parasitic diseases (schistosomiasis, 12.5%; toxoplasmosis, 20%; Chagas' disease, 16%; leprosy, 12.5%; tuberculosis, 30%). In contrast, none of the 44 serum samples from American visceral leishmaniasis (AVL) patients had interferon activity during the active stage of the disease. However, 13% of the samples obtained from patients recovered from AVL were positive.
Barral-Netto
M
M
Serviço de Imunologia, Hospital Prof. Edgard Santos, Universidade Federal de Bahia, Salvador, Brasil.
Diez
R
R
Badaró
R
R
Sampaio
D
D
Barral
A
A
Carvalho
E M
EM
Falcoff
E
E
D003588:Cytopathogenic Effect, Viral; D006801:Humans; D007372:Interferons / Q000097:blood*; D007896:Leishmaniasis / Q000097:blood*; D007897:Leishmaniasis, Mucocutaneous / Q000097:blood; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000097:blood
D007372:Interferons