The role of free radicals and antioxidative enzymes in erythrocytes and liver cells in the course of Plasmodium berghei and Plasmodium vinckei infection of mice.

Blood schisontocidal test of D0 + D3 type revealed different characteristics of the Plasmodium berghei and Plasmodium vinckei infection. Both types of the rodent plasmodia kill the untreated mice. Chloroquine treatment alone does not prevent the death of the P. berghei infected animals and they died at a low level of parasitaemia. The animals cured with chloroquine plus MAP survive. The infection with P. vinckei produces a high level of parasitaemia and the chloroquine treatment alone prevents the death of mice. The difference in the pathogenic characteristics between P. berghei and P. vinckei is manifested in the results measuring the kinetics of the activity of antioxidative enzymes in the red blood and liver cells of the infected mice: lipid peroxidation (LPO), superoxide dismutases (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GP), catalase (CAT) and reduced glutathione (GSH). The rapid increase of the LPO in the RBC in particular in the P. vinckei infected animals indicates the prevailing role of the membrane detoxification process. A continuous increase in the activity of enzymes of cytoplasmic origin, e.g. SOD and GP was also observed. A powerful increase in GSH distinguishes the erythrocytes of P. vinckei infected animals. Similar but not identical data characterize the enzyme activities of the liver cells of the plasmodia infected animals.