15d-PGJ(2) modulates acute immune responses to Trypanosoma cruzi infection

Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz. 2010 Mar;105(2):137-43. doi: 10.1590/s0074-02762010000200005.

Abstract

The acute phase of Trypanosoma cruzi infection is associated with a strong inflammatory reaction in the heart characterised by a massive infiltration of immune cells that is dependent on the T. cruzi strain and the host response. 15d-PGJ(2) belongs to a new class of anti-inflammatory compounds with possible clinical applications. We evaluated the effects of 15d-PGJ(2) administered during the acute phase of T. cruzi infection in mice. Mice were infected with the Colombian strain of T. cruzi and subsequently treated with 15d-PGJ2 repeatedly for seven days. The inflammatory infiltrate was examined by histologic analysis. Slides were immunohistochemically stained to count the number and the relative size of parasite nests. Infection-induced changes in serum cytokine levels were measured by ELISA. The results demonstrated that treatment with 15d-PGJ(2) reduced the inflammatory infiltrate in the skeletal muscle at the site of infection and decreased the number of lymphocytes and neutrophils in the blood. In addition, we found that 15d-PGJ(2) led to a decrease in the relative volume density of amastigote nests in cardiac muscle. T. cruzi-infected animals treated with 15d-PGJ(2) displayed a statistically significant increase in IL-10 levels with no change in IFN-gamma levels. Taken together, we demonstrate that treatment with 15d-PGJ(2) in the acute phase of Chagas disease led to a controlled immune response with decreased numbers of amastigote nests, as measured by the volume density.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Chagas Disease / drug therapy*
  • Chagas Disease / immunology
  • Chagas Disease / pathology
  • Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
  • Immunity, Cellular
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Interferon-gamma / immunology*
  • Interleukin-10 / immunology*
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • PPAR gamma / agonists*
  • PPAR gamma / therapeutic use
  • Prostaglandin D2 / analogs & derivatives*
  • Prostaglandin D2 / therapeutic use

Substances

  • 15-deoxyprostaglandin J2
  • PPAR gamma
  • Interleukin-10
  • Interferon-gamma
  • Prostaglandin D2