Long-term observations on mouse strains experimentally infected with Angiostrongylus costaricensis

Abstract

BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were experimentally infected with Angiostrongylus costaricensis and the parasitic parameters and antibody response during the acute and chronic phases of infection were analyzed. Following administration of six third-stage larvae (L3), there was no significant difference in the mean worm recovery or mean larval output. Coinciding with the maturation of worms in infected animals and with the egg output in mesenteric arteries, a strong increase in the humoral immune response was observed in both mouse strains. This response was characterized by a hypergammaglobulinemia, with a predominance of IgA and IgG1 during the acute phase of infection, and IgG1 and total IgE during the patent and post-patent periods. Significantly higher levels of IgM, IgG and IgG1 were found in BALB/c mice compared with C57BL/6 mice. On the other hand, a significantly higher concentration of IgA was detected at 6 and 7 weeks post-infection in C57BL/6 mice compared with BALB/c mice. Specific IgE could not be detected in any of the mouse strains. Our results suggest that immunoglobulins, mainly IgG1, contribute to the outcome of a primary A. costaricensis infection with respect to the period of patency and to mortality during the chronic phase.

Angiostrongylus costaricensis egg antigen for the immunodiagnosis of abdominal angiostrongyliasis

“…While for the latex test, also known as Morera's test, there is no published information on its sensitivity and specificity, for the ELISA test, cross-reaction with other helminthiasis and a low sensitivity have been the major problems. In order to minimize these cross-reactions as much as possible, a number of antigens have been tested, from somatic to purified fractions of different extracts, using techniques such as ELISA, Western blot and immunofluorescence (Graeff-Teixeira et al , 1997; Geiger et al , 2001; Abrahams-Sandí et al , 2004). To date, the immunoenzymatic test showing the highest specificity (91.1%) was developed by Geiger et al (2001), using somatic extract of female adult forms as an antigen in order to determine specific IgG 1 .…”

Standardization of a multiplex real-time PCR test for the identification of Angiostrongylus cantonensis, A. costaricensis and A. vasorum

“…Existen pruebas de antígenos, precipitación de partículas en látex, ELISA y una PCR que usa cebadores construidos a partir de secuencias de A. cantonensis, los cuales presentan reacciones cruzadas y carecen de los registros para confirmar su reproducibilidad, sensibilidad y utilidad en el diagnóstico clínico y epidemiológico (9,(36)(37)(38)(39)(40).…”

Elimination of Angiostrongylus costaricensis larvae in feces from experimentally infected Swiss mice: circadian rhythm and correlation with survival

“…Despite several studies in animal model and humans, many points remain unclear, in particular its pathogenesis and the life cycle of A. costaricensis (Abrahams-Sandi et al 2004;Mota and Lenzi 1995). In the present study, we assessed fecal elimination of A. costaricensis L1 from experimentally infected Swiss mice and correlated L1 elimination with survival.…”