title: Tacrolimus prevents murine cerebral malaria.
abstract: Tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil are immunosuppressants frequently used in human organ transplantation. Tacrolimus is also reported to inhibit Plasmodium falciparum growth in vitro. Here, we report that tacrolimus prevented the death from cerebral malaria of Plasmodium berghei ANKA-infected C57BL/6J mice, but not their death from malaria due to the high parasitaemia and severe anaemia. The mycophenolate mofetil-treated mice showed higher mortality from cerebral malaria and succumbed to malaria earlier than tacrolimus-treated littermates. Tacrolimus attenuated the infiltration of mononuclear cells including pathogenic CD8+T cells into the brain. It appears to prevent murine cerebral malaria through the inhibition of cerebral infiltration of CD8+T cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunogenetics, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.|Department of Parasitology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Lam Quoc
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Bao
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunogenetics, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Dang My
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Nhi
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Product Development, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Nguyen Tien
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Huy
authors.affiliation: Department of Parasitology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Shinjiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hamano
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunogenetics, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hirayama
mesh_terms: D000740:Anemia / Q000188:drug therapy; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000276:immunology*; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016779:Malaria, Cerebral / Q000188:drug therapy*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009173:Mycophenolic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018512:Parasitemia / Q000188:drug therapy; D010962:Plasmodium berghei / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D016559:Tacrolimus / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D009173:Mycophenolic Acid; D016559:Tacrolimus
keywords: CD8+ T cells; experimental cerebral malaria; prevention; sequestration; tacrolimus