Schistosomiasis protects against multiple sclerosis.
The incidences of schistosomiasis and multiple sclerosis (MS) are mutually exclusive worldwide suggesting that schistosomiasis may offer protection against the induction of the immune-mediated disease, MS. Recent studies using the mouse model of MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, support a direct suppression of the onset of MS by chronic Schistosoma mansoni infection. Self-reactive Th1 but not Th2 responses develop in infected mice immunized with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein albeit at reduced levels indicating that the induction of auto-reactive T cells is not abolished nor phenotypically altered. CNS infiltration by inflammatory cells, particularly macrophages, is significantly reduced in S. mansoni-infected, immunized mice compared to uninfected, immunized mice. Because activated macrophages are crucial to the induction of clinical disease, these findings support the hypothesis that differences in macrophage activation may contribute to the reduced incidence and delayed progression of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis during schistosomiasis.
School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, P.O. Box 600, Wellington, New Zealand. anne.laflamme@vuw.ac.nz
Anne Camille
AC
La Flamme
Kanishka
K
Canagasabey
Marina
M
Harvie
B Thomas
BT
Bäckström
D000818:Animals; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000276:immunology*; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000276:immunology; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology*; D012555:Schistosomiasis mansoni / Q000276:immunology*; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology
D016753:Interleukin-10; D015847:Interleukin-4