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Infection and Immunity, August 2001, p. 4906-4915, Vol. 69, No. 8
0019-9567/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/IAI.69.8.4906-4915.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Heterogeneity of Wild Leishmania major Isolates in Experimental Murine Pathogenicity and Specific Immune Response

C. Kébaïer,1 H. Louzir,1,* M. Chenik,1 A. Ben Salah,2 and K. Dellagi1

Laboratoire d'Immunologie (LAF301)1 and Laboratoire d'Epidémiologie et d'Ecologie Parasitaire,2 Institut Pasteur de Tunis, World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Research and Training in Immunology and Leishmaniasis, 1002 Tunis-Belvédère, Tunisia

Received 2 October 2000/Returned for modification 21 November 2000/Accepted 14 May 2001

Virulence variability was investigated by analyzing the experimental pathogenicity of 19 Leishmania major strains in susceptible BALB/c mice. Twelve strains were isolated from Tunisian patients with zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis; seven strains were isolated in Syria (n = 1), Saudi Arabia (n = 2), Jordan (n = 2), or Israel (n = 2). BALB/c mice were injected in the hind footpad with 2 × 106 amastigotes of the various isolates, and lesion progression was recorded weekly for 9 weeks. Interleukin-4 (IL-4) and gamma interferon (IFN-gamma ) production of lymph node mononuclear cells activated in vitro with parasite antigens were evaluated 5 weeks after infection. We show that disease progression induced by different L. major isolates was largely heterogeneous although reproducible results were obtained when using the same isolate. Interestingly, isolates from the Middle East induced a more severe disease than did the majority of Tunisian isolates. Strains with the highest virulence tend to generate more IL-4 and less IFN-gamma in vitro at week 5 postinfection as well as higher levels of early IL-4 mRNA in the lymph node draining the inoculation site at 16 h postinfection. These results suggest that L. major isolates from the field may differ in virulence, which influences the course of the disease induced in mice and the type of immune response elicited by the infected host.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Laboratoire d'Immunologie, Institut Pasteur de Tunis, BP: 74, 1002 Tunis-Belvédère, Tunisia. Phone: 216-1 783022. Fax: 216-1 791833. E-mail: hechmi.louzir{at}pasteur.rns.tn.

Infection and Immunity, August 2001, p. 4906-4915, Vol. 69, No. 8
0019-9567/01/$04.00+0   DOI: 10.1128/IAI.69.8.4906-4915.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Benhnini, F., Chenik, M., Laouini, D., Louzir, H., Cazenave, P. A., Dellagi, K. (2009). Comparative Evaluation of Two Vaccine Candidates against Experimental Leishmaniasis Due to Leishmania major Infection in Four Inbred Mouse Strains. CVI 16: 1529-1537 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Babay, B. E. C., Louzir, H., Kebaier, C., Boubaker, S., Dellagi, K., Cazenave, P.-A. (2004). Inbred Strains Derived from Feral Mice Reveal New Pathogenic Mechanisms of Experimental Leishmaniasis Due to Leishmania major. Infect. Immun. 72: 4603-4611 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Baldwin, T. M., Elso, C., Curtis, J., Buckingham, L., Handman, E. (2003). The Site of Leishmania major Infection Determines Disease Severity and Immune Responses. Infect. Immun. 71: 6830-6834 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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