Immunological assay and histopathological study of Toxoplasma gondii in Experimental male rats

Alkardhi, Ihsan K. A.; Elloumi, Nesrine; Masmoudi, Hatem; Muhammed, Hayder A.; Sellami, Hayet

doi:10.29079/qjvms.2023.183393

	Immunological assay and histopathological study of Toxoplasma gondii in Experimental male rats
Al-Qadisiyah Journal of Veterinary Medicine Sciences
Volume 22, Issue 2, September 2023, Pages 25-35 PDF (785.61 K)
Document Type: Research Paper
DOI: 10.29079/qjvms.2023.183393
Authors
Ihsan K. A. Alkardhi^* ¹^{, 2}; Nesrine Elloumi³; Hatem Masmoudi³; Hayder A. Muhammed⁴; Hayet Sellami⁵
¹Department of Biology, College of Science, University of Sfax, Tunisia.
²Department of Basic medical science, College of Nursing, University of Al-Qadisiyah, Iraq.
³Department of Immunology, Habib Bourguiba University Hospital, University of Sfax, Tunisia.
⁴Department of Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Kerbala, Iraq.
⁵Fungi and Parasitic Laboratory, Drosophila research unit, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sfax, Tunisia.
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular entity that can infect nearly all cells of vertebrates with a mild blood temperature. The main objective of the study is to investigate the host immune aspects in Toxoplasma gondii-infected experimental animals by monitoring some cytokines production profiles and analyzing immune cell phenotypes. Therefore, the toxoplasma cysts were extracted and injected into 40 male rats compared to 10 rats as a control group. Then, leukocytes from peripheral blood were stained with anti-surface antigens antibodies and analyzed using flow cytometry. Pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines levels were evaluated 12 and 30 days after infection using a quantitative ELISA assay. Rats infected with Toxoplasma in placental suspension had significantly higher levels of IL-12, IFN-γ, IL-10, and IL-6 than control rats. Infected rats also had higher levels of CD14⁺ and CD19⁺ leukocytes. A difference between the stages tachyzoite and bradyzoite was also observed. Histopathology of T. gondii-infected rat tissues confirmed bradyzoite stage in liver, testis, brain, and kidney, further studies are needed to unravel the mechanisms behind stage switching. In conclusion: There are significant differences in the concentrations of cytokines associated with some cellular and humoral immune cells of rats infected experimentally with toxoplasmosis.
Keywords
Toxoplasma gondii, flow cytometry analysis, immune response, In vivo model, cytokine production; bradyzoite, tachyzoite, cyst, differentiation

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