Experimental Cerebral Malaria Alters Blood Lipid Levels During Pathogenesis.

Experimental Cerebral Malaria Alters Blood Lipid Levels During Pathogenesis.
J Parasitol. 2019 Jun;105(3):401-407
Authors: Lv L, Hai L, Wang Q, Shi X
Abstract
Malaria infection threatens millions of people worldwide. Sequestering of Plasmodium-infected erythrocytes within the blood vessels of the brain may lead to a more severe form of disease called cerebral malaria (CM), which is difficult to diagnose and treat. Here we used C57BL/6 mice to establish a model of experimental CM (ECM). Comparing the dosage dependence of ECM induction, we found that inoculation with 1×103 parasitized erythrocytes had higher efficiency at establishing ECM than 1×106 parasitized erythrocytes. However, the percentage of ECM varied in different experimental batches. Infected mice that developed ECM had elevated serum levels of total cholesterol and decreased serum levels of high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. In addition, ECM mice exhibited liver and kidney dysfunction. ECM induced by low dose inoculation requires additional verification for efficiency. Biochemical analysis of ECM mice revealed characteristic blood lipid levels. These findings provide new clues for the diagnosis and mechanistic probing of CM pathogenesis.
PMID: 31094653 [PubMed - in process]

Source: The Journal of Parasitology - May 17, 2019 Category: Parasitology Authors: Lv L, Hai L, Wang Q, Shi X Tags: J Parasitol Source Type: research