Immunoglobulin classes (IgG, IgA and IgM) and acute phase proteins in pregnant women with urinary schistosomiasis.

BACKGROUND

S. haematobium have been implicated in female genital schistosomiasis (FGS), ectopic pregnancy and infertility. The presence of schistosome eggs in urine has been reported to correlate with FGS but host immune response in FGS is yet to be determined. This gap in knowledge is addressed by this study.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Serum levels of three immunoglobulin classes (IgG, IgA and IgM) and three acute phase proteins (transferrin, alpha 2-macroglobulin, and haptoglobin) were determined by using single radial immunodiffusion technique in one hundred and eight Nigerian women aged between 15 and 30 years. They were made up of thirty pregnant women with urinary schistosomiasis (P+USS), thirty-six pregnant women without USS (P-USS), eighteen non-pregnant women with USS (NP+USS) and twenty-four healthy non-pregnant women without urinary schistosomiasis (NP-USS).

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

IgG, IgA and IgM were significantly raised in pregnant women with urinary schistosomiasis compared with non-pregnant women without urinary schistosomiasis (p < 0.01 in each case). The level of transferrin was significantly increased in non-pregnant subjects with urinary schistosomiasis compared with non-pregnant women without urinary schistosomiasis (p <0.01) suggesting the possibility of iron deficiency in these subjects. Alpha-2 macroglobulin was significantly elevated in pregnant subjects with urinary schistosomiasis compared with non-USS subjects, while the mean serum haptoglobin level was significantly higher in pregnant women without urinary schistosomiasis compared to pregnant subjects with urinary schistosomiasis. The results indicate that USS or pregnancy changes different aspects of humoral immunity, thus the co-existence of pregnancy and S. haematobium infection may influence each other.