title: Autoantibody against dendrite in Plasmodium falciparum infection: a singular auto-immune phenomenon preferentially in cerebral malaria.
abstract: To investigate auto-reactive antibodies against dendrites of neurons (AAD) previously reported in cerebral malaria (CM) for their functional biological activity, a serological study was conducted in a larger cohort of patients with CM and uncomplicated falciparum malaria (UM). Sera from Thai adults with CM (n=22) and UM (n=21) were tested to determine the titers of AAD by indirect fluorescent antibody test and specific antibody responses to Plasmodium falciparum antigens by ELISA. Immunoreactivity against the dendrites of neurons was observed in 100% of sera from the cerebral malaria group as compared to 71% from the non-cerebral malaria group, and the median titer of AAD was higher in CM versus UM, though the difference did not reach significance. In contrast an opposite pattern was seen for anti-P. falciparum antibody titers, which were significantly lower among CM than among UM patients, both for IgG and IgM (p=0.024 and p=0.0033, respectively). Our results indicate that this auto-immune phenomenon induced by P. falciparum infection occurs preferentially in cerebral malaria despite lower responses in parasite-specific antibody responses.
authors.affiliation: Bio-Medical Parasitology Unit, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France. sebastien gallien@yahoo.fr
authors.forename: Sébastien
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gallien
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Roussilhon
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Blanc
authors.forename: Jean-Louis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Pérignon
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Druilhe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan / Q000097:blood; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003712:Dendrites / Q000276:immunology*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000097:blood; D016779:Malaria, Cerebral / Q000276:immunology*; D016778:Malaria, Falciparum / Q000276:immunology*; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D013785:Thailand
chemical_list: D000913:Antibodies, Protozoan; D001323:Autoantibodies; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M