title: Interferon-gamma antagonizes transforming growth factor-beta2-mediated immunosuppression in murine Toxoplasma encephalitis.
abstract: The in vivo modulating activity of recombinant transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta2 on acute toxoplasmosis was evaluated in both Toxoplasma gondii susceptible C57BL/6 and resistant BALB/c mice. TGF-beta2 lethally exacerbated Toxoplasma encephalitis in C57BL/6, but not in BALB/c mice. In C57BL/6 mice, TGF-beta2 induced a profound dose-dependent increase of the intracerebral parasitic load as well as a reduction of IFN-gamma levels in serum and cerebrospinal fluid with a coincident decrease of MHC class II antigen expression of macrophages, microglial cells, and B cells. Furthermore, TGF-beta2-treated C57BL/6 mice showed a reduced activation of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and a diminished recruitment of immune cells to the brain. The TGF-beta2-mediated development of lethal toxoplasmosis in C57BL/6 mice was abolished by treatment with recombinant interferon (IFN)-gamma.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Med. Mikrobiologie und Hygiene, Klinikum Mannheim, Fakultät für Klinische Medizin der Universität Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schlüter
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bertsch
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Frei
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Hübers
authors.forename: O D
authors.initials: OD
authors.lastname: Wiestler
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hof
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fontana
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Deckert-Schlüter
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000502:physiology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology; D008264:Macrophages / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D017628:Microglia / Q000276:immunology; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D014122:Toxoplasma; D016781:Toxoplasmosis, Cerebral / Q000276:immunology*; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*
chemical_list: D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D007371:Interferon-gamma