Abstract

The purpose of this project is to delineate the mechanisms involved in regulating immune responses in filarial and nonfilarial disease states. Immunoregulatory studies have examined the phenomenon of antigen-specific anergy in microfilaremic patients by showing this anergy to be a result of the production of the antiproliferative cytokine, IL-10. Filter immunoplaque assays for the major cytokines have been developed and used to demonstrate that in helminth infections of humans there is an expansion of Th2 CD4+ cells. The phenotypic characterization of these Th2 CD4+ cells has shown them to be CD45RO+ HLA-DR+ CD27-; a novel method for intracellular staining for cytokines has been used to assess further the frequency of these cells. Similarly, new ways of assessing eosinophil activation have also been developed.

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Intramural Research (Z01)
Project #
1Z01AI000197-15
Application #
3746477
Study Section
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
Budget End
Support Year
15
Fiscal Year
1994
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
State
Country
United States
Zip Code

  Publications

Guadalupe, Irene; Mitre, Edward; Benitez, Susana et al. (2009) Evidence for in utero sensitization to Ascaris lumbricoides in newborns of mothers with ascariasis. J Infect Dis 199:1846-50
Babu, Subash; Bhat, Sajid Q; Kumar, N Pavan et al. (2009) Attenuation of toll-like receptor expression and function in latent tuberculosis by coexistent filarial infection with restoration following antifilarial chemotherapy. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 3:e489
Babu, Subash; Bhat, Sajid Q; Pavan Kumar, N et al. (2009) Filarial lymphedema is characterized by antigen-specific Th1 and th17 proinflammatory responses and a lack of regulatory T cells. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 3:e420
Babu, Subash; Blauvelt, Carla P; Nutman, Thomas B (2007) Filarial parasites induce NK cell activation, type 1 and type 2 cytokine secretion, and subsequent apoptotic cell death. J Immunol 179:2445-56
Semnani, Roshanak Tolouei; Keiser, Paul B; Coulibaly, Yaya I et al. (2006) Filaria-induced monocyte dysfunction and its reversal following treatment. Infect Immun 74:4409-17
Mitre, Edward; Nutman, Thomas B (2006) Basophils, basophilia and helminth infections. Chem Immunol Allergy 90:141-56
Babu, Subash; Blauvelt, Carla P; Kumaraswami, V et al. (2006) Regulatory networks induced by live parasites impair both Th1 and Th2 pathways in patent lymphatic filariasis: implications for parasite persistence. J Immunol 176:3248-56
Lipner, Ettie M; Gopi, P G; Subramani, R et al. (2006) Coincident filarial, intestinal helminth, and mycobacterial infection: helminths fail to influence tuberculin reactivity, but BCG influences hookworm prevalence. Am J Trop Med Hyg 74:841-7
Talaat, Kawsar R; Bonawitz, Rachael E; Domenech, Pilar et al. (2006) Preexposure to live Brugia malayi microfilariae alters the innate response of human dendritic cells to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. J Infect Dis 193:196-204
Babu, Subash; Blauvelt, Carla P; Kumaraswami, V et al. (2006) Cutting edge: diminished T cell TLR expression and function modulates the immune response in human filarial infection. J Immunol 176:3885-9

Showing the most recent 10 out of 45 publications