EOSINOPHIL GRANULOCYTES AND PLASMA CELLS IN JEJUNAL MUCOSA OF DOGS NATURALLY INFECTED WITH OR WITHOUT INTESTINAL PARASITES

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the distribution ol' eosinophil granulocytes and plasma cells in the jejunal mucosa (~f the dogs naturally inl'ected or not infected with intestinal parasites. /n addition, the total leukocyte and eosinophil granulocyte concentrations were determined in peripheral blood. For this pUlposes, II mongrel dogs were used where 7 ol'them were determined to be inl'ected naturally with in testin al parasites, and in 4 of them there were no evidence ol'an actual intestinal parasitic inl'ection. The tissue specimens ol' the jejunum were obtained by abdominal surgery fi"om both groups. Specimens were fixed with i 0% neutral bu.ti'eredformalin. The tissue sections were stained with either Congo red for eosinofil granulocytes or methyl green pyroninfor plasma cells. Tissue sections were examined by light microscopically. Both cells were counted in villus-crypt units olJejunal mucosa. The determination ol' the leukocyte and eosinophil granulocyte concentrations in peripheral blood were carried outfrom blood samples with standart technics. /t was observed that eosinophil granulocytes were located in lamina propria ofjejunal mucosa, especialfy within vilfus intestinalis. basal parts of crypts and lamina subglandularis. FUl1hermore. eosinophil granulocytes were also located intraepithelially in crypts and rarely at the base of the villus. Some eosinophil granulocytes were also seen within intestinal lumen. The pyroninophilic cells were identified in jejunum. They were intensively prominent in villus intestinales, but they werefound also in crypts in a lesser extent. A t-Testfor independent groups showed that the eosinophil granulocyte count in jejunal mucosa was higher in parasitized dogs than in jejunal mucosa ol' noninl'ected dogs (p< 0.05). But there were no sign(ficant differences in CO/1- centrations (JI' leukocytes and eosinophil granulocytes in peripheral blood, as well as in the number ofplasma cells in jejunal mucosa when compared the dogs with intestinal parasite with those showing no parasite infeces.