CIRCULATING IMMUNE-COMPLEXES IN ACUTE SCHISTOSOMIASIS

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  • 1 January 1979
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 37  (2) , 221-227
Abstract
The sera of patients with acute and chronic schistosomiasis were tested for the presence of circulating immune complexes with the 125I-C1q [q fragment of complement component 1] binding assay. Of 15 patients with acute schistosomiasis, 14 (93%) had elevated 125I-C1q binding activity, while only 2 of 11 (18%) patients with chronic disease had C1q binding complexes. This difference was significant (P < 0.001) and paralleled the degree of clinical disease activity between the 2 groups of patients. Ig[immunoglobulin]G and IgM were readily detected in all of these circulating complexes but the specific parasite antigens initiating their formation could not be defined. The level of circulating immune complexes was inversely correlated with the absolute eosinophil counts for individuals in the acutely infected group, an observation compatible with the hypothesis that a functional role for the eosinophil is the destruction and elimination of immune complexes.