T-Regulatory Cells and Inflammatory and Inhibitory Cytokines in Malawian Children Residing in an Area of High and an Area of Low Malaria Transmission During Acute Uncomplicated Malaria and in Convalescence.
J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc
; 4(3): 232-41, 2015 Sep.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-26335932
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Malaria still infects many Malawian children, and it is a cause of death in some of them. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) help in negating immune-related pathology, it but can also favor multiplication of malaria parasites. The question remains whether children recovering from uncomplicated malaria (UCM) have higher Tregs and interleukin (IL)-10 levels in convalescence.METHODS:
We recruited children between the ages of 6 and 60 months presenting with acute UCM in Blantyre (low transmission area) and Chikwawa (high transmission area). We observed the children after 1 month and 3 months and analyzed their blood samples for parasitemia, lymphocyte subsets, and levels of the cytokines interferon (IFN)-γ, IL-10, and transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß. Blood samples from age-matched controls were also analyzed for the same parameters.RESULTS:
Compared with controls, acute UCM was associated with mild lymphopenia, splenomegaly, and high levels of IFN-γ, tumor necrosis factor-α, and IL-10, which normalized in convalescence. In Chikwawa, Treg counts were significantly (P < .0001) higher in convalescence compared with acute disease, whereas in Blantyre, these were as low as in healthy controls both during acute disease and in convalescence. Blantyre had a higher percentage of parasiteamic children (15% versus 12%) in convalescence compared with Chikwawa, but none of these developed symptomatic malaria during the study duration. Concentrations of TGF-ß were higher at time points for the study participants and in controls from Blantyre compared with those recruited in Chikwawa.CONCLUSIONS:
The high transmission area was associated with high Tregs counts and IL-10 concentrations in convalescence, which could have an effect on parasite clearance. We recommend that children recovering from UCM, especially those from high transmission area, should sleep under insecticide-treated nets, be screened for parasitemia, and a provision of antimalarial prophylaxis should be considered.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Infecções por HIV
/
Citocinas
/
Linfócitos T Reguladores
/
Parasitemia
/
Transmissão de Doença Infecciosa
/
Malária
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Incidence_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Child, preschool
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Infant
/
Male
País/Região como assunto:
Africa
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2015
Tipo de documento:
Article