Premium
Age‐dependency of infection status and serum antibody levels in human whipworm (Trichuris trichiura) infection
Author(s) -
BUNDY D.A.P.,
LILLYWHITE J.E.,
DIDIER J.M.,
Simmons I.,
Bianco A.E.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
parasite immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.795
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1365-3024
pISSN - 0141-9838
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3024.1991.tb00558.x
Subject(s) - ascaris lumbricoides , trichuris trichiura , immunology , trichuriasis , biology , antibody , immune system , antigen , immunoglobulin e , trichuris , helminthiasis , immunoglobulin d , necator americanus , helminths , ascariasis , b cell
Summary This study examines the age‐dependency of the relationships between human infection with whipworm ( Trichuris trichiura ) and parasite‐specific antibody level measured by ELISA against an extract of adult worms after preincubation of the sera with Ascaris lumbricoides adult worm extract. The convex age‐profile of parasite infection intensity is shown to be mirrored ban ase‐dependent change in age‐class mean levels of IgG (all subclasses except IgG 3 ). IgA. IgM and IgE. Mean antibody levels rise with increasing acquisition of infection in childhood and decline as the intensity of infection falls in adulthood. Immunobiot analysis of selected sera from different age‐classes indicates that antigen recognition is simitath dependent on infection intensity. In individual children, antibody levels correlate positively with acquisition of infection, consistent with a simple model of antigen dosage specifying the magnitude of the humoral immune response. In adults, Igd correlates positively and IgA negatively with intensity of infection, suggesting involvement of these isolypes in functional roles of immune blockade or effector mechanisms, respectively.