Development of a pigtail macaque model of sexually transmitted infection/HIV coinfection using Chlamydia trachomatis, Trichomonas vaginalis, and SHIV(SF162P3).

BACKGROUND: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are associated with an increased risk of HIV infection. To model the interaction between STIs and HIV infection, we evaluated the capacity of the pigtail macaque model to sustain triple infection with Trichomonas vaginalis, Chlamydia trachomatis, and SHIV(SF162P3). METHODS: Seven SHIV(SF162P3) -infected pigtail macaques were inoculated with T. vaginalis only (n = 2), C. trachomatis only (n = 1), both T. vaginalis and C. trachomatis (n = 2), or control media (no STI; n = 2). Infections were confirmed by culture and/or nucleic acid testing. Genital mucosa was visualized by colposcopy. RESULTS: Characteristic gynecologic signs were observed for both STIs, but not in control animals. Manifestations were most prominent at days 7-10 post-infection. STIs persisted between 4 and 6 weeks and were cleared with antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: These pilot studies demonstrate the first successful STI-SHIV triple infection of pigtail macaques, with clinical presentation of genital STI symptoms similar to those observed in humans.

Systemic immune response to Trichomonas vaginalis infection during pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to characterize the systemic immune response in women with trichomoniasis in pregnancy as compared with uninfected women. STUDY DESIGN: A nested case control study was performed on 195 serum samples. Serum concentrations of cytokines, chemokines, and C-reactive protein (CRP) were compared between infected and uninfected women. Cytokines and chemokines were measured using a multiplex bead assay. The CRP concentrations were determined using a standard enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. RESULTS: The median serum concentration of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) was significantly higher in the trichomonas-infected group compared with the uninfected group (8.9 pg/mL vs. 5.7 pg/mL; P <0.001). The mean log-transformed CRP values were higher in the infected group compared with the uninfected group (1.66 vs. 1.27; P = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that trichomoniasis during pregnancy can lead to a systemic immune response in some women as exhibited by elevation in the serum concentrations of both GM-CSF and CRP.

Urticaria from Trichomonas vaginalis infection.

We report the case of a 32-year-old woman who had pruritic urticarial skin lesions associated with episodes of arthralgia. The first site affected by the eruption was the inside surface of the thighs; the patient also reported the presence of leukorrhea. The woman had previously been treated with H1 antagonist with moderate and transitory results; skin lesions reappeared just after the interruption of the treatment. Her biochemical data showed increased levels of erythrocyte sedimentation rate, blood eosinophilia and hypocomplementemia. Antinuclear antibodies, rheumatoid factor, cryoglobulins and serological diagnosis for hepatitis or mononucleosis viruses resulted negative. Considering the initial site of the cutaneous features and the presence of leukorrhea, we requested a vaginal smear and a culture of the cervical secretion, which revealed the presence of a Trichomonas infection. Furthermore, the SDS-PAGE revealed the presence of a molecular mass of 230,000 Da (230-kDa) in the serum, which indicated a Trichomonas surface protein. The following treatment with oral metronidazole caused the eradication of the Trichomonas infection after 3 weeks and subsequently the resolution of the urticarial clinical features. We wish to underline that in the presence of a case of urticaria vasculitis syndrome which seems to be without cause, it is important to investigate every diagnostic suspicion scrupulously.

Detection of serum antitrichomonal antibodies in urogenital trichomoniasis by immunofluorescence.

Trichomonas vaginalis is a frequently encountered genital pathogen in both males and females. In females, vaginitis due to this parasite is one of the most common manifestation. The indirect fluorescent technique (IFA) test was carried out to detect antitrichomonal antibodies in 370 female patients using whole cell antigen. Seventy one (19.18%) gave positive reaction for either of the class IgG, IgM and IgA antibodies. The level of the IgG class antibodies was found to be higher i.e. 58 (81.69%) than IgM 11 (15.27%) antibodies, which may be suggestive of past infection or a prolonged manifestation by the organisms.

[The sex hormone content of the peripheral blood in women with gonorrhea and gonorrhea-trichomoniasis infections]. / Soderzhanie polovykh gormonov v perifericheskoi krovi zhenshchin s gonoreinoi i gonoreino-trikhomonadnoi infektsiei.

Peripheral blood estradiol, progesterone, testosterone were measured in 100 women with gonorrhea and Gonococcus-Trichomonas infection. Estradiol levels were found reduced in both phases, progesterone level elevated in the follicular and lowered in the lutein phases of the menstrual cycle as against the norm. Elevated testosterone levels were revealed in the peripheral blood of women with gonorrhea, particularly so in chronic gonorrhea and mixed Gonococcus-Trichomonas infection. Therapy did not result in normalization of blood hormone concentrations, this pointing to advisability of including the drugs correcting hormonal disorders into a complex of treatment of such patients.

High spontaneous premature labor rate in insulin-dependent diabetic pregnant women: an association with poor glycemic control and urogenital infection.

The incidence of spontaneously occurring premature labor in insulin-dependent diabetic pregnancies is unclear, because previous studies have been confounded by a high rate of iatrogenic prematurity. The purpose of this study was to determine, in a large population of insulin-dependent diabetic pregnant women, the rate of spontaneous occurrence of premature labor and the various factors that may affect it. We hypothesized a priori that spontaneously occurring premature labor occurs at a high rate in insulin-dependent diabetic pregnant women, mainly because of poor control of diabetes during pregnancy, and is related to the presence of polyhydramnios and hypomagnesemia. One hundred forty-five insulin-dependent diabetic women undergoing 181 pregnancies were recruited since 1978 in an interdisciplinary prospective study. The goals of glucose control were a fasting blood glucose less than 100 mg/dL and a 90-minute postprandial glucose less than 140 mg/dL. The rate of spontaneous premature labor, 31.1%, was significantly higher (P less than .01) than that in a control population managed by the same obstetricians in similar clinical settings (20.2%). The following variables were not significantly associated with the onset of premature labor: maternal age, parity, gravidity, diabetic class according to White, presence of renal disease or retinopathy, previous elective abortion, chronic hypertension or pregnancy-induced hypertension, cigarette smoking, first-trimester or post-20 weeks' gestation vaginal bleeding, maternal serum magnesium concentration, or polyhydramnios.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)