Maternal schistosomiasis impairs offspring Interleukin-4 production and B cell expansion.

ABSTRACT: Epidemiological studies have identified a correlation between maternal helminth infections and reduced immunity to some early childhood vaccinations, but the cellular basis for this is poorly understood. Here, we investigated the effects of maternal Schistosoma mansoni infection on steady-state offspring immunity, as well as immunity induced by a commercial tetanus/diphtheria vaccine using a dual IL-4 reporter mouse model of maternal schistosomiasis. We demonstrate that offspring born to S. mansoni infected mothers have reduced circulating plasma cells and peripheral lymph node follicular dendritic cells at steady state. These reductions correlate with reduced production of IL-4 by iNKT cells, the cellular source of IL-4 in the peripheral lymph node during early life. These defects in foll

SUBMITTER: Cortes-Selva D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7877777 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature