Eosinophils, but not eosinophil peroxidase or major basic protein, are important for host protection in experimental Brugia pahangi infection.

The attenuation of eosinophilia by the administration of monoclonal antibodies to CCR3 consistently correlates with impairment in worm elimination following primary intraperitoneal Brugia pahangi infections in mice. Host protection was unimpaired in mice deficient in eosinophil peroxidase (EPO) or major basic protein 1 (MBP-1), suggesting that eosinophils are essential in host protection but that neither EPO nor MBP-1 alone is.