Splenic interleukin 1 gene expression is associated with accumulation of macrophages and oxygen radical production in Plasmodium vinckei malaria.

High levels of interleukin 1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) were detected in vitro, in murine peritoneal macrophages stimulated with Plasmodium vinckei exogenous antigens, and in vivo, in sera of P. vinckei-parasitized mice. Moreover, high production of IL-1 alpha mRNA could be detected by in situ hybridization analysis in spleen sections of mice during the course of P. vinckei malaria. The observed IL-1 alpha gene expression in the spleen was associated with the accumulation of F4/80+ macrophages in the red pulp and in the marginal zone of follicles, as well as with the relative proportions of Mac-1+ cells in the spleen and the capacity of spleen cells to produce reactive oxygen intermediates during murine malaria.