Immune-dependent thrombocytopaenia in mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni

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Abstract
As has been shown previously, immunologically intact mice with patent Schistosoma mansoni infections has a significantly lower mean platelet number than intact uninfected mice (PS. mansoni-induced thrombocytopaenia in mice is thus seemingly immune dependent. Immunologically intact mice with chronic 12-week-old S. mansoni infections has IgG antibodies that were reactive in an ELISA-type assay wit whole fixed platelets of both mouse and human origin. In Western immunoblots the IgG antibodies from chronically-infected mice reacted in particular against mouse and human platelet antigens of 90, 37 and 30 kDa. Antisera raised from 2 rabbits, immunized respectively with mouse and human platelet antigens, cross-reacted with antigens of the larval, adult worm and egg stages of S. mansoni. These results support the hypothesis that an anti-platelet antibody response may be the cause of the thrombocytopaenia observed in mice with patent schistosome infections.

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