Immunosuppression and experimental amoebiasis in guinea-pigs

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Abstract
The effect was studied of immunosuppression by steroids and anti-lymphocytic serum on the outcome of amoebic infection in guinea-pigs. All the immunosuppressed animals had severe and deep penetrating lesions involving the entire caecum; 20% of those which received azathioprine-hydrocortisone had liver lesions following intracaecal inoculation of a virulent isolate of Entamoeba histolytica. Immune intact animals had caecal lesions of minimal to moderate severity and none developed liver lesions. The specific cellular immune response was significantly altered in immunodepressed animals and this was more marked in animals with hepatic lesions. It is suggested that immunosuppressive therapy could help precipitate the development of liver abscess in the human host and could also simultaneously exaggerate an otherwise sub-clinical intestinal amoebic infection.

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