Changes in cell populations and immunoglobulin-producing cells in the spleens of mice infected with Trypanosoma cruzi: correlations with parasite-specific antibody response.
Infection of mice with Trypanosoma cruzi elicits the production of parasite-specific antibodies which reach high levels and remain elevated for at least 105 days of infection. The more susceptible C3H(He) mouse actually has a higher level of "natural" antibodies for T. cruzi but may show a greater lag time in the production of antibodies in response to infection than the more resistant C57BL/6 mouse. Comparison of the kinetics of antibody production against T. cruzi and the numbers of immunoglobulin-producing cells in the spleen during the course of infection suggests that a large number of the immunoglobulin-producing cells are probably producing antibodies directed against the parasite and are not the result of an exhaustive polyclonal B-cell activation. Cell numbers in the spleen change dramatically both in total numbers and in the percentage of different cell types during infection with T. cruzi. The percentage of T cells in the spleen remains relatively unchanged throughout infection in both mouse strains tested but numbers of Ig-positive cells decrease markedly during the acute phase of infection while macrophage numbers increase up to sixfold. Cell numbers and proportions of B cells, T cells, and macrophages return to near normal values by 105 days of infection in the C57BL/6 mouse.
D000818:Animals; D000917:Antibody Formation; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000235:genetics; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000235:genetics; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000235:genetics; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000235:genetics*; D007700:Kinetics; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000276:immunology*
D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D007136:Immunoglobulins