Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-24T05:11:15.782Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Sex differences and cross-immunity in DBA/2 mice infected with L. mexicana and L. major

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

J. Alexander
J. Alexander
Affiliation:
University of Strathclyde, Immunology Division, The Todd Centre, 31 Taylor Street, Glasgow G4 0N R
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Female DBA/2 mice were found to be highly resistant to Leishmania mexicana and rarely developed lesions even when inoculated subcutaneously with high numbers (5 × 106) of amastigotes. Male DBA/2 mice, on the other hand, were much more susceptible to this parasite and often developed non-healing lesions even when inoculated subcutaneously with comparatively few (5 × 104) amastigotes. Conversely, although both male and female DBA/2 mice developed ulcerating lesions when inoculated subcutaneously with L. major amastigotes, lesions invariably healed in males but did not heal in females. Male DBA/2 mice recovered from L. major infection subsequently were found to be resistant to subcutaneous challenge with L. mexicana. Conversely female DBA/2 mice that had failed to develop lesions when infected with L. mexicana developed lesions which healed following subcutaneous challenge with L. major. Thus there is bilateral cross-immunity between L. mexicana and L. major in DBA/2 mice which overrides differences in sex-determined susceptibility to both organisms.

Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 96 , Issue 2 , April 1988 , pp. 297 - 302
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1988

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Adler, S. & Gunders, A. E. (1964). Immunity to Leishmania mexicana following spontaneous recovery from Oriental sore. Transactions of the Royal Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 58, 274–7.Google Scholar
Alexander, J. & Blackwell, J. M. (1987). The immunological significance of genetically determined cross-reactivity between taxonomically distinct Leishmania species. Annales de Parasitologie (in the Press).Google Scholar
Alexander, J. & Vickerman, K. (1975). Fusion of host cell secondary lysosomes with the parasitophorous vacuoles of Leishmania mexicana infected macrophages. Journal of Protozoology 22, 502–8.Google Scholar
Blackwell, J. M. & Alexander, J. (1987). Different host genes recognise and control infection with taxonomically distinct Leishmania species. Annales de Parasitologie (in the Press).Google Scholar
Blackwell, J. M., Roberts, B. & Alexander, J. (1985). Responses of BALB/c mice to leishmanial infection. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology 122, 97–106.Google Scholar
Colomer-Gould, V., Quintas, L. G., Keithly, J. & Nogueira, N. (1985). A common major surface antigen on amastigotes and promastigotes of Leishmania species. Journal of Experimental Medicine 162, 902–16.Google Scholar
Eidenger, D. & Garret, T. J. (1972). Studies of the regulatory effects of sex hormones on antibody formation and stem cell differentiation. Journal of Experimental Medicine 136, 1098–116.Google Scholar
Giannini, M. S. H. (1986). Sex-influenced response in the pathogenesis of cutaneous leishmaniasis in mice. Parasite Immunology 8, 31–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenblatt, C. L. (1980). The present and future of vaccination for cutaneous leishmaniasis. In New Developments with Human and Veterinary Vaccines, pp. 259–85. New York: Alan R. Liss.Google Scholar
Kierzenbaum, F., Knecht, E., Budzko, D. B., Pizzimenti, M. C. (1974). Phagocytes: a defense mechanism against infection with Trypanosoma cruzi. Journal of Immunology 112, 1839–44.Google Scholar
Mock, B. A., Fortier, A. H., Potter, M., Blackwell, J. & Nacy, C. A. (1985). Genetic control of systemic Leishmania major infection: identification of subline differences for susceptibility to disease. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology 122, 115–27.Google Scholar
Nicol, T., Vernon-Roberts, B. & Quantock, D. C. (1965). The influence of various hormones on the reticular-endothelial system: endocrine control of body defence. Journal of Endocrinology 33, 365–83.Google Scholar
Russell, D. J. & Alexander, J. (1987). Effective immunisation against cutaneous leishmaniasis with defined membrane antigens reconstituted into liposomes. Journal of Immunology (in the Press).Google Scholar
Santoli, D., Trinchieri, G., Zmyewski, C. M. & Koprowski, H. (1976). HLA related control of spontaneous and antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxic activity in humans. Journal of Immunology 117, 765–70.Google Scholar
Terres, G., Morrison, S. L. & Habicht, G. S. (1968). A quantitative difference in the immune response between male and female mice. Proceedings of the Society of Experimental Biology and Medicine 127, 664–7.Google Scholar