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CD4+ T cell response in early erythrocytic stage malaria: Plasmodium berghei infection in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice

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Abstract

Plasmodium berghei ANKA causes lethal malaria in mice. It is well established that C57BL/6 mice die early with fulminant symptoms including convulsion, whereas BALB/c mice survive this phase and die later of anemia and prostration. Early death in C57BL/6 mice has been considered to result from the adverse effects of inflammatory cytokines. To elucidate the CD4+ T cell responses in early death due to severe malaria, the kinetics of CD4+ T cells were compared by analyzing cell surface markers and the production of cytokines and transcription factors. The results revealed that cytokine production by CD4+ T cells was induced as early as 5 days after infection and the maintenance of higher levels of IL-4 and IL-10 may be associated with the protection of BALB/c mice from early death. These results suggest that parasite control in the early phase of infection may be important for the development of an effective vaccine.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by a Grant-in Aid for Young Researchers from the Ministry of Education and Science of Japan (50313846 to AS).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Institute for Biological Sciences, Tokyo University of Science, 2669 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba, 278-0022, Japan

    Akiko Shibui, Nobumichi Hozumi, Chiharu Shiraishi, Yoshitaka Sato & Hajime Iida

  2. Department of Medical Genomics, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan

    Sumio Sugano

  3. Department of Parasitology, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Shirokanedai, Minatoku, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan

    Junichi Watanabe

Authors
  1. Akiko Shibui
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  2. Nobumichi Hozumi
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  3. Chiharu Shiraishi
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  4. Yoshitaka Sato
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  5. Hajime Iida
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  6. Sumio Sugano
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  7. Junichi Watanabe
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Correspondence to Akiko Shibui.

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Shibui, A., Hozumi, N., Shiraishi, C. et al. CD4+ T cell response in early erythrocytic stage malaria: Plasmodium berghei infection in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice. Parasitol Res 105, 281–286 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-009-1435-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-009-1435-8

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