Coinfection With Confers Protection Against Cutaneous Leishmaniasis.

Infection with certain bacteria, parasites, and viruses alters the host immune system to influencing disease outcome. Here, we determined the outcome of a chronic infection with on cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) caused by . C57BL/6 mice infected with were given a sub-curative treatment with diminazene aceturate then coinfected with by vector bites. Our results revealed that infection with controls CL pathology. Compared to controls, coinfected mice showed a significant decrease in lesion size ( < 0.05) up to 6 weeks post-infection and a significant decrease in parasite burden ( < 0.0001) at 3 weeks post-infection. Protection against resulted from a non-specific activation of T cells by trypanosomes. This induced a strong immune response characterized by IFN-γ production at the site of bites and systemically, creating a hostile inflammatory environment for parasites and conferring protection from CL.