title: Immunity to placental malaria. IV. Placental malaria is associated with up-regulation of macrophage migration inhibitory factor in intervillous blood.
abstract: Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) may play a role in immune responses to malaria during pregnancy by virtue of its ability to activate macrophages and to overcome the immunosuppressive effect of glucocorticoids. The present study investigated whether plasma MIF levels are altered in pregnant women with placental malaria (PM) and/or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. For the first time it is demonstrated that MIF levels in the intervillous blood (IVB) plasma were significantly elevated, compared with that in both peripheral plasma ( approximately 500-fold) and cord plasma (4.6-fold; P<.01). IVB mononuclear cells also produced significantly higher levels of MIF, compared with that of peripheral blood mononuclear cells. PM was associated with increased levels of MIF in the IVB plasma (P<.02). Primigravid and secundigravid women had significantly higher levels of MIF in their IVB plasma than did multigravid women (P<.05). HIV infection did not significantly alter MIF levels in any site examined.
authors.affiliation: Division of Parasitic Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Public Health Service, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Atlanta, Georgia 30341, USA.
authors.forename: Sujittra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chaisavaneeyakorn
authors.forename: Julie M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Othoro
authors.forename: Juliana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Otieno
authors.forename: Sansanee C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Chaiyaroj
authors.forename: Ya Ping
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Bernard L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Nahlen
authors.forename: Altaf A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Lal
authors.forename: Venkatachalam
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Udhayakumar
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007112:Immunity, Maternally-Acquired / Q000276:immunology*; D008263:Macrophage Migration-Inhibitory Factors / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D008264:Macrophages / Q000276:immunology*; D008288:Malaria / Q000276:immunology*; D011247:Pregnancy
chemical_list: D008263:Macrophage Migration-Inhibitory Factors