Abstract
BackgroundCystic echinococcosis (CE) is a near cosmopolitan zoonosis caused by the larval stage of the dog tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus. E. granulosus infection induces a polarized T-helper type 2 (Th2) systematic immune response in its intermediate hosts. However, it is not known whether the infection modulates lung inflammation by regulating local immune response. In this study, we examined the effects of E. granulosus infection on mouse ovalbumin (OVA)-induced asthma model.MethodsBALB/c mice were intraperitoneally transplanted with 50 small E. granulosus cysts cultured in vitro. At 3 months post-inoculation, the mice were sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin (OVA). For histopathological studies, hematoxylin eosin and periodic acid schiff staining was used to examine the inflammatory cells infiltration and goblet cells hyperplasia, respectively. Cytokine levels were measured by mouse cytometric bead array (CBA) Kit and quantitative RT-PCR and other molecular biological approaches. Airway hyperresponsiveness was assessed in response to increasing doses of methacholine. Serum immunoglobulins were determined by ELISA.ResultsE. granulosus infection significantly increased Th2 and Treg cytokine levels in serum and lung tissues, but down-regulated the expression of IL-5 in the lungs and IL-17A in serum and lung tissues of asthmatic mice sensitized and challenged with OVA. Histological staining of lung tissues showed that E. granulosus infection significantly reduced the severity of OVA-induced airway inflammation including reduction of eosinophil cell infiltration and mucus production. The E. granulosus infection also reduced eosinophil accumulation induced by OVA in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and also ameliorated airway hyperresponsiveness, a hallmark symptom of asthma.ConclusionsE. granulosus infection remarkably reduces the severity of OVA-induced airway inflammation likely through enhancing IL-10 and down-regulation of IL-5 and IL-17A.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-014-0522-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a near cosmopolitan zoonosis caused by the larval stage of the dog tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus
Animal infection and murine models of allergic asthma All BALB/c mice were randomly divided into four groups with 10 mice in each group comprising: (1) negative control group administrated with PBS only (PBS); (2) E. granulosus infection group (Eg); (3) ovalbumin (OVA) sensitization and challenge group (OVA); (4) E. granulosus infection plus OVA sensitization and challenge group (Eg + OVA)
We examined the effect of E. granulosus infection on eosinophil major basic protein (EMBP), a constituent of eosinophil secondary granules, that is elevated in biological fluids taken from patients with asthma and other eosinophil-associated diseases [26]
Summary
E. granulosus infection induces a polarized T-helper type 2 (Th2) systematic immune response in its intermediate hosts. Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a near cosmopolitan zoonosis caused by the larval stage of the dog tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus This disease is highly endemic and is a major public health problem in Central Asia, the countries around the Mediterranean, Northern Africa and South. Epidemiological studies have shown that inhabitants in schistosomiasis-endemic areas had less incidence of asthma, compared with those living in nonendemic regions [19]. This phenomenon was first demonstrated in mouse models of Schistosoma mansoni [20] and the nematode, Trichinella spiralis [21], which showed that these infections protected mice from OVA-induced airway reactivity
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