Open AccessPB2037 CHANGES IN ERYTHROPOIESIS IN MALARIA‐INDUCED ANEMIA
Author(s) -
Pêgo A.C.,
Lima I.,
Martins G.,
Sá Pereira I.,
Martins A.C.,
Kapitão A.,
Nai A.,
Camaschella C.,
Silvestri L.,
Gozzelino R.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
hemasphere
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 11
ISSN - 2572-9241
DOI - 10.1097/01.hs9.0000566636.17524.c3
Subject(s) - erythropoiesis , malaria , immunology , ineffective erythropoiesis , immune system , anemia , biology , plasmodium berghei , pathogenesis , spleen , erythropoietin , bone marrow , plasmodium (life cycle) , medicine , endocrinology , parasite hosting , computer science , world wide web
Background: Severe malarial anemia (SMA) is a complication developed in the course of Plasmodium infection, which is often associated with increased rates of malaria‐related morbidity and mortality. Possibly linked to a dysregulated immune response and unbalanced production of inflammatory mediators, one of the main features of SMA involves an impaired and/or ineffective erythropoiesis, which seems to critically contribute to the high number of deaths due to malaria infection. Erythropoiesis is regulated by the hormone erythropoietin, which upon binding to its receptor, activates a signaling cascade that leads to an increased consumption of iron used for the production of red blood cells. Aims: To gain new insights into the pathogenesis of malaria infection, our study aims to assess how erythropoiesis changes in mice exposed to different strains of Plasmodium parasites, known to cause severe forms of malaria, and/or in response to multiple re‐infections. Methods: Flow cytometry analyses were used to show the complementarity between the bone marrow and spleen in regulating the erythropoietic response in infected‐mice and its correlation with parasite load. Results: The interplay between this phenomenon and the expression of genes regulating iron metabolism was also analyzed, showing a strict association with the severity the disease. The extent of immune response activation upon exposure to Plasmodium infection was also evaluated and linked to the degree of induced SMA. Summary/Conclusion: The results obtained demonstrated that malaria infection significantly alters the erythropoietic process. In particular, we observed an early response of the spleen, as to compensate the loss of an appropriate bone marrow erythropoiesis during the infection.