Abstract
BackgroundSchistosomiasis continues to inflict significant morbidity and mortality in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. The disease endemicity overlaps with the transmission of other parasitic diseases. Despite the ubiquity of polyparasitism in tropical regions, particularly in rural communities, little is known about the impact of multiple helminth infections on disease progression. In this pilot study, we describe the influence of chronic Trichuris trichiura infection on Schistosoma mansoni egg-induced hepatopathology in infected baboons.MethodsBaboons with or without underlying whipworm infection were challenged with S. mansoni cercariae to establish schistosomiasis. Adult S. mansoni worms were recovered by perfusion and enumerated, hepatic granulomas were quantified via light microscopy, and transcriptional profiling of tissues were completed using RNA sequencing technologies.ResultsCo-infection with both S. mansoni and T. trichiura resulted in higher female schistosome worm burden and significantly larger liver granuloma sizes. Systems biology analyses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) revealed pathways associated with increased liver damage in co-infected baboons.ConclusionsUnderlying chronic whipworm infection intensified schistosome egg-induced liver pathology in infected baboons. RNA-Seq analysis provided insight into pathways associated with increased liver damage, corroborating histological findings.
Highlights
Schistosomiasis continues to inflict significant morbidity and mortality in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world
Anemia and Trichuris Dysentery Syndrome contribute to protein energy malnutrition which leads to an immunocompromised state that can exacerbate subsequent helminth infections [3, 4]
Others have found that concomitant infections of Schistosoma japonicum and Trichuris significantly increased the odds of anemia in children [4] and that mice with established chronic Trichuris muris infection and challenged with S. mansoni developed significantly higher S. mansoni worm burden and egg and granuloma burden in the liver [5]
Summary
Schistosomiasis continues to inflict significant morbidity and mortality in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Despite the ubiquity of polyparasitism in tropical regions, in rural communities, little is known about the impact of multiple helminth infections on disease progression. In this pilot study, we describe the influence of chronic Trichuris trichiura infection on Schistosoma mansoni egg-induced hepatopathology in infected baboons. To prepare for deployment of interventions such as vaccines against schistosomiasis [6], it is critical to understand the interactions between potential confounding factors that will be present in endemic areas, such as polyparasitism This present study aimed to evaluate whether concurrent infection with T. trichiura could influence S. mansoni egg-induced hepatopathology using the non-human primate model (baboons). We describe the first transcription profiling using next-generation sequencing for liver damage in baboons infected with schistosomiasis and trichuriasis, indicating several pathways by which co-infection may exacerbate hepatopathology
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