The influence of Hymenolepis nana infection on antibody responses to sheep red blood cells in mice.

The influence of Hymenolepis nana infection on the primary antibody responses to both sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and dinitrophenylated Ficoll-coated SRBC (DNP-coated SRBC) was examined in BALB/c mice. The in vitro cultures of spleen cells (Sp C) obtained from mice inoculated with either 100 or 1,000 eggs developed fewer plaque forming cells (PFC) than those of Sp C from non-infected mice, when the cells were exposed to SRBC. Thereafter, the number of PFC was gradually increased and almost reached the initial levels by day 21. On the other hand, the ability of Sp C obtained from mice infected with 10,000 eggs to produce PFC gradually dropped as the course of infection proceeded. However, H. nana infection did not reduce the capacity of Sp C to produce PFC to DNP-coated SRBC. Addition of T-cell enriched population from infected mice, which was obtained by passing through a nylon wool column, to anti-Thy-1.2 antibody treated non-infected Sp C significantly inhibited the production of PFC to SRBC. These results strongly suggest that H. nana infection impairs T-cell function in mice.