title: Relationships among peripheral eosinophilia, eosinophil peroxidase activity, interleukin-5 concentration and faecal nematode egg count during natural, mixed gastrointestinal nematode infection.
abstract: A longitudinal study of sheep, naturally infected with gastrointestinal helminths, was carried out to quantify the relationships among eosinophilia, eosinophil peroxidase activity, interleukin-5 level and faecal egg counts. Faecal egg counts, peripheral eosinophilia and peroxidase activity per eosinophil were moderately repeatable but interleukin-5 concentrations had a remarkably high repeatability. Animals with higher concentrations of interleukin-5 had greater peripheral eosinophilia and those animals with higher numbers of eosinophils had lower faecal egg counts. These associations were statistically significant but quite weak. Variation in interleukin-5 levels does not appear to be responsible for most of the variation in eosinophil responses in outbred sheep.
authors.affiliation: Department of Parasitology, Institute of Zoology, University of Warsaw, Poland. mdolig@eco1.biol.uw.edu.pl
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Doligalska
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Moskwa
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Stear
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay / Q000662:veterinary; D047209:Eosinophil Peroxidase; D004802:Eosinophilia / Q000150:complications / Q000662:veterinary*; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D015848:Interleukin-5 / Q000378:metabolism*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009349:Nematode Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D010270:Parasite Egg Count / Q000662:veterinary*; D010544:Peroxidases / Q000378:metabolism*; D012756:Sheep; D012757:Sheep Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000469:parasitology*
chemical_list: D015848:Interleukin-5; D047209:Eosinophil Peroxidase; D010544:Peroxidases