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Infection and Immunity, September 2000, p. 5430-5434, Vol. 68, No. 9
0019-9567/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Maternal Trypanosoma cruzi Infection Upregulates Capacity of Uninfected Neonate Cells To Produce Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Cytokines

Johan Vekemans,1,dagger Carine Truyens,1 Faustino Torrico,2 Marco Solano,2 Mary-Cruz Torrico,2 Patricia Rodriguez,2 Cristina Alonso-Vega,1,2 and Yves Carlier1,*

Laboratory of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brussels, Brussels, Belgium,1 and CUMETROP/LABIMED, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Mayor de San Simon Cochabamba, Bolivia2

Received 15 February 2000/Returned for modification 28 March 2000/Accepted 12 June 2000

The possibility of maternal in utero modulation of the innate and/or adaptive immune responses of uninfected newborns from Trypanosoma cruzi-infected mothers was investigated by studying the capacity of their whole blood cells to produce cytokines in response to T. cruzi lysate or lipopolysaccharide-plus-phytohemagglutinin (LPS-PHA) stimulation. Cells of such newborns occasionally released gamma interferon (IFN-gamma ) and no interleukin-2 (IL-2) and IL-4 upon specific stimulation, while their mothers responded by the production of IFN-gamma , IL-2, and IL-4. Infection in mothers was also associated with a hyperactivation of maternal cells and also, strikingly, of cells of their uninfected neonates, since their release of proinflammatory (IL-1beta , IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-alpha ]) as well as of anti-inflammatory (IL-10 and soluble TNF receptor) cytokines or factors was upregulated in the presence of LPS-PHA and/or parasite lysate. These results show that T. cruzi infection in mothers induces profound perturbations in the cytokine response of their uninfected neonates. Such maternal influence on neonatal innate immunity might contribute to limit the occurrence and severity of congenital infection.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Laboratoire de Parasitologie, Faculté de Médecine U.L.B., route de Lennik 808, CP 616, B-1070 Brussels, Belgium. Phone: 32 2 555 62 50. Fax: 32 2 555 61 28. E-mail: ycarlier{at}ulb.ac.be.

dagger Present address: Medical Research Council, Fajara, The Gambia.

Infection and Immunity, September 2000, p. 5430-5434, Vol. 68, No. 9
0019-9567/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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