title: The intestinal mast cell response to Trichinella spiralis infection in mast cell-deficient w/wv mice.
abstract: The intestinal mast cell response and lymphoblast activity, as measured by the incorporation of 3H-thymidine into mesenteric lymph node cells (MLN) of WBB6F1-w/wv(w/wv) mice, their normal congenic littermates (+/+) and C57BL/6J mice, were compared after infection with Trichinella spiralis. Marked and similar blast cell activity and an increase in number of cells were observed in the MLN of infected w/wv and C57BL/6J mice 7 and 15 days P.I. In contrast to C57BL/6J mice, primary T. spiralis intestinal infections were prolonged in w/wv mice and more muscle larvae were recovered from w/wv mice 29 days post-infection. In C57BL/6J mice mucosal mast cell (MMC) numbers increased on day 7 P.I. whereas in w/wv mice these cells did not increase significantly until day 15 post-infection, reaching a peak on day 22. In w/wv mice, the response to secondary infection as determined by an accelerated expulsion of adult worms did not occur until day 11 postchallenge whereas in +/+ and C57BL/6J mice worm expulsion was nearly complete at that time. In both primary and secondary infections, the MMC numbers in w/wv mice were significantly lower than in C57BL/6J or +/+ mice. The results suggest that prolongation of T. spiralis infection in w/wv mice is associated with delayed appearance of mast cells in the intestinal mucosa which may reflect slow generation of the intestinal inflammatory response.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002455:Cell Division; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000473:pathology*; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000469:parasitology; D007814:Larva; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D014234:Trichinella / Q000254:growth & development; D014235:Trichinellosis / Q000473:pathology*