Increases in levels of schistosome-specific immunoglobulin E and CD23(+) B cells in a cohort of Kenyan children undergoing repeated treatment and reinfection with Schistosoma mansoni.

BACKGROUND

Age prevalence curves for areas in which schistosomiasis is endemic suggest that humans develop partial immunity to reinfection beginning in early adolescence. We conducted a 2-year longitudinal study to determine whether children infected with Schistosoma mansoni develop protection-related immune responses after treatment with praziquantel and whether the development of these immune responses is accelerated by frequent treatment after reinfection.

METHODS

Children (8-10 years old) were tested for S. mansoni every 4 months and treated with praziquantel when positive (arm A; n=68) or were tested and treated at the end of the 2-year follow-up period (arm B; n=49).

RESULTS

Children in arm A who remained free of infection during follow-up had significantly higher baseline levels of schistosome-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) than did children with > or =2 repeat diagnoses of S. mansoni infection. Children with > or =2 repeat diagnoses of S. mansoni infection had significantly increased levels of anti-schistosome IgE and CD23(+) B cells after receiving > or =3 praziquantel treatments over the course of follow-up. No increase in either parameter was seen in children who received only the baseline praziquantel treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

B cell activation and anti-schistosome IgE are associated with resistance to S. mansoni in children, and these immunological parameters can be increased by multiple rounds of infections and praziquantel-induced cures.