ALBERT

Notes: . Mice infected with the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of human Chagas’disease, develop immunosuppressed responses to heterologous antigens. Experiments were performed using infected mice in the acute stage of infection to assess immunoregulatory activities during induction of direct plaque-forming cells (DPFC) to sheep erythrocytes (SRBC), hapten-conjugated SRBC (TNP-SRBC), and horse erythrocytes (TNP-HRBC). Studies in vivo demonstrated that anti-SRBC responses were best enhanced when T. cruz-infected mice were injected with primed T cells derived from normal or infected mice immunized four days previously. The presence of enhancing capacities for DPFC responses by T cells from T. cruzi-infected mice were also supported by experiments examining the hapten-carrier effect. Preimmunization of infected mice with SRBC or HRBC four days before injection of hapten-homologous (TNP-SRBC or TNP-HRBC) carrier resulted in markedly augmented anti-hapten antibody responses. These results show that functional help provided by T cells activated during priming and exposed to a challenge dose of antigen (SRBC) in a time-dependent mode can overcome the effect of immunosuppression in T. cruzi-infected mice.

Notes: Previous investigations showed that interleukin-2 (IL-2) administered in vivo into mice infected with Trypanosoma cruzi reduced levels of parasitemia and increased longevity. Present experiments examined the effect of administration of different doses of IL-2 at different times during infection in mice on parasitemia and histopathoiogy of heart tissue. Two different doses of IL-2 (1,500 or 10,000 U) given at 3 different times during infection were equivalent in reducing parasitemia. All of the IL-2 treated groups of mice had significantly lower numbers of circulating trypomastigotes as compared with controls not receiving this fymphokine. This IL-2 treatment of T. crazi-infected mice resulted also in lower numbers of pseudocysts in all 4 ventricular regions in the hearts. This was particularly evident in the more severely infected right ventricular wall; however, a similar decrease was not as apparent in the less severely infected left ventricular wall. The IL-2 treated, infected mice showed minimal or no effect in reducing inflammation of myocardial cells. However, the mildest inflammation of ventricular wall tended to occur in mice receiving IL-2 treatment either as a low dose (1,500 U) or a high dose (10,000 U) at 5, 7 and 9 days after infection as compared with mice treated later on. It was concluded that IL-2 treatment of infected mice produced a significant decrease in parasitemia and decreased infection of myocardial cells. Key words. Heart, histopathoiogy, inflammation, lymphokine, myocardial cells, pseudocyst, Trypanosoma cruzi.

Notes: Abstract Fluorescence emitted by individual cells of severalTrichomonas vaginalis strains, nearly all of which were cloned, incubated with fluorescein-conjugated lectins in the absence (experimental) or presence (control) of inhibitory sugars, or else in phosphate-buffered saline alone (autofluorescence) was measured with a Leitz MPV Compact microfluorometer. Irrespective of whether the organisms were postfixed in formalin or glutaraldehyde, the relative fluorescence emitted by the cells was closely comparable, provided that appropriate neutral density filters were employed. However, autofluorescence was much higher for glutaraldehyde-fixed trichomonads. Therefore, although better preserved and more amenable to subsequent manipulations, such organisms were found unsuitable for use in “qualitative” titration of the fluorescence emitted by various strains. Provided that the necessary precautions were taken, comparable fluorescence readings were obtained with trichomonads affixed to glass slides by heat (41° C, on a section spreader) or by a cytologic centrifuge (Cytospin 2). Large numbers of concanavalin A (Con A)-binding sites were present on organisms of all strains, irrespective of their virulence for human patients and as estimated by the subcutaneous mouse assay; these sites were shown with the aid ofd-mannose to be mannose or mannose-related residues. More binding sites for soybean agglutinin (SBA) were found on the virulent than on avirulent strains. On the basis of inhibition experiments, the sugar residues mainly responsible for these differences appeared to bed-lactose residues. Similar differences were observed withRicinus communis agglutinin Type I (RCA I), for whichd-galactose was employed as the competing sugar. However, with two cloned strains the situation with regard to RCA I binding was reversed — more of the lectin bound to a mild than to a virulent strain. The results obtained withRicinus communis Type II agglutinin (RCA II) were often similar to those noted for RCA I; however, in most instances the inhibition withN-acetyl-d-galactosamine (GalNAc) was lower. Furthermore, the results noted with the GalNAc-specific agglutinins fromDolichus biflorus andHelix pomatia suggested that only very few GalNAc residues were available for binding on the surfaces of allT. vaginalis strains examined in the course of this study. Statistical analyses of fluorescence emitted by four clones of each, Balt 42 (virulent) and JH31A (avirulent)T. vaginalis strain upon incubation with Con A and SBA revealed homogeneity of these strains with regard to the number of the specific surface saccharide residuesd-mannose andd-lactose. To render the lectin assay applicable to routine virulence evaluation ofT. vaginalis strains, fluorescence of virulent and avirulent strains was examined visually after incubation of these strains with SBA at concentrations ranging from 50 μg to 1 μg. Differences in virulence were reflected in the SBA titers characteristics of the several strains tested.

Notes: Abstract Antibody titers to Neospora antigens ranged from 40 to 160 before vaccination, from 80 to 5,120 2 weeks after the first dose of vaccination, and 320 to 40,960 2 weeks after the second (booster) vaccination. A peak antibody titer of 40,960 was also detected 28 days after the booster vaccination among animals vaccinated with Neospora vaccine formulated with Bay R1005 adjuvant. In heifers inoculated with experimental formulations of Neospora vaccines, transient development of injection site reactions resulted in 1 out of 15 animals. This injection site reaction was not detectable 14 days after the first observation and measurements were made. We have also demonstrated that vaccines derived from tissue-culture-grown Neospora tachyzoites are safe and would be expected to be efficacious.