Abstract
The pathology associated with Schistosoma japonicum (S. japonicum) infection in humans is attributed to parasite egg-induced granulomatous inflammation and fibrosis in the host liver. Currently, a marker that is reliable, cheap, less device-dependent, and can be easily and repeatedly used on a large scale to monitor the progression of liver pathology in schistosomiasis japonica endemic areas is lacking. The levels of serum S. japonicum heat shock protein 60 (SjHSP60)-specific IgG and its subtype antibodies in animals (mice and rabbits) or patients with schistosomiasis were measured by ELISA. Liver pathologies in mice and rabbits were evaluated by gross pathology and histopathology, and hepatic fibrosis in patients was examined with ultrasound imaging. The results revealed that the titers of the total IgG and subtype IgG1 anti-SjHSP60 antibodies were positively correlated with the severity of liver pathology after S. japonicum infection. Our findings indicate that the SjHSP60 IgG and IgG1 antibody levels can be used as potential candidate biomarkers for evaluation of liver pathology in schistosomiasis; however, validation remains to be explored in further work.
Highlights
Schistosomiasis remains a major public health problem worldwide and is endemic mainly in the poor and undeveloped countries or areas[1]
In both infected animals and human patients, we found that the levels of SjHSP60 antibodies were significantly correlated with the severity of liver pathology, which suggests that SjHSP60 antibody could be a biomarker for the screening and monitoring of liver pathology in schistosomiasis japonica
To better illustrate whether the SjHSP60 antibody titers were correlated with the severity of liver pathology in the acute stage, C57BL/6 J mice were infected with 12, 20, or 40 S. japonicum cercariae
Summary
Schistosomiasis remains a major public health problem worldwide and is endemic mainly in the poor and undeveloped countries or areas[1]. During mild hepatic damage[9, 10] These methods are time-consuming, high-tech device-dependent, expensive, and may not be suitable for repeated use in mass-screen patients or for epidemiologically monitoring the progression of liver pathology, especially in the poor and remote endemic areas. We investigated whether SjHSP60 antibodies could serve as a biomarker and are associated with the severity of liver pathology in hosts with schistosome infection In both infected animals and human patients, we found that the levels of SjHSP60 antibodies were significantly correlated with the severity of liver pathology, which suggests that SjHSP60 antibody could be a biomarker for the screening and monitoring of liver pathology in schistosomiasis japonica
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