CD4+ and CD19+ splenocytes undergo apoptosis during an experimental murine infection with Taenia crassiceps

• DOI: 10.1007/s00436-003-0829-2
• Publication Date: 2019-12-12T03:24:50Z
• Authors: Sergio López-Briones; Edda Sciutto; José Luis Ventura; Alejandro Zentella; Gladis Fragoso
• Keywords: Taenia crassiceps; Splenocyte; Taenia; Immunosuppression

The Taenia crassiceps cysticercus is a cestode that naturally and experimentally infects rodents in which it reproduces by budding. In the laboratory, a persistent cellular immunosuppression with a concomitant increasing load of parasites has been observed in experimentally infected BALB/cAnN mice. In this study, enhanced apoptosis was found in spleen cells from 30-day infected mice with a typical "ladder-patterned" DNA fragmentation and an increase in phosphatidylserine expression. A characteristic poly-(ADP-ribose) polymerase cleavage indicates that this cell death is caspase-mediated. Apoptosis was detected in the CD4(+) and CD19(+) splenocytes of infected mice after in vitro stimulation with cysticercal antigens. Considering previous results on the crucial role that CD4(+) T cells play in controlling the extent of infection, apoptosis in this T-lymphocyte subpopulation induced by T. crassiceps cysticerci could be responsible for the immunosuppression that underlies parasite success.