Figure 1.
Blood feeding and fecal egg output decline from soon after patency.
Worm gut function as an indicator of physiological status, determined by the concentration of CAA in the bloodstream of rhesus macaques (•). Fecundity of the worm population, revealed by fecal egg output (□). Values are mean + or − SE. n = 6 animals.
Table 1.
Parasitological and associated parameters for individual rhesus macaques.
Figure 2.
Most surviving worms are morphologically degenerate.
Confocal microscopy on selected tissues of adult worms recovered from the portal system of rhesus macaques (A, C, E) and mice (B, D, F), and stained with Langeron's carmine. A) female posterior lacking vitelline lobules (V) and with greatly simplified intestinal epithelium (E) versus B) abundant vitelline lobules and normal intestinal epithelium with lamellate extensions. C) female mid body showing shrunken ovary (O) with few recognizable oocytes versus D) normal ovary with large number of healthy oocytes. E) shrunken testes (T) with lacunae and few sperm versus F) normal testes structure. All images are the same magnification. Bar = 10 µm.
Figure 3.
Cells internal to the body wall musculature are atrophied.
Electron micrograph of a transverse section of the posterior of A) pallid female worm from rhesus macaque. The syncitial tegument (T), body wall musculature (M) and intestinal epithelium (E) are intact but cells of the parenchyma (P) and vitelline lobules (V) are devoid of content apart from prominent central nuclei. The gut lumen is virtually empty. B) posterior of female worm from mouse, with abundant vitelline lobules and gut lumen full of partly digested blood.
Figure 4.
Humoral responses are implicated in declining worm fitness.
Antibody responses during infection monitored by ELISA using SWAP as coating antigen. A) IgM and B) IgG. Values are mean ±SE, n = 6 animals. C) IgG levels at weeks 8 (□) and 18 (•) for individual animals plotted against the number of worms recovered at week 18.
Figure 5.
Antibodies recognize adult worm secreted proteins.
Western blots of 2DE separations of SASP probed with A) high titer, low worm burden serum (R6) and B) low titer, high worm burden serum (R5). Region X is a group of highly reactive protein spots not detected by Sypro Ruby or Coomassie staining of the corresponding gel. Region Y is a group of highly reactive protein spots present only in trace amounts on the gel. SASP proteins matched to the blot are 1. asparaginyl endopeptidase, 2. unknown function, 3. thioredoxin glutathione reductase, 4. Sm200 surface protein, 5. α2 macroglobulin, 6. thioredoxin peroxidase, 7. GST 28.
Figure 6.
Antibodies recognize proteins exposed on the adult worm tegument.
Western blots of separated TSP, probed with individual rhesus sera. A) 1DE separation showing that the complexity of serum reactivity is inversely proportional to final worm burden. B) 2DE separation probed with serum from the most reactive animal (R6). Targets identified by matching the 2D blot to an identical gel are 1. α2 macroglobulin, 2. Sm200, 3. unknown function, 4. unknown function, 5. HSP70, 6. Alkaline phosphatase, 7. Sm22.6, 8. LMWP.