Early Exposure of Infants to GI Nematodes Induces Th2 Dominant Immune Responses Which Are Unaffected by Periodic Anthelminthic Treatment

We have previously shown a reduction in anaemia and wasting malnutrition in infants <3 years old in Pemba Island, Zanzibar, following repeated anthelminthic treatment for the endemic gastrointestinal (GI) nematodes Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworm and Trichuris trichiura. In view of the low intensity of worm infections in this age group, this was unexpected, and it was proposed that immune responses to the worms rather than their direct effects may play a significant role in morbidity in infants and that anthelminthic treatment may alleviate such effects. Therefore, the primary aims of this study were to characterise the immune response to initial/early GI nematode infections in infants and the effects of anthelminthic treatment on such immune responses. The frequency and levels of Th1/Th2 cytokines (IL-5, IL-13, IFN-γ and IL-10) induced by the worms were evaluated in 666 infants aged 6–24 months using the Whole Blood Assay. Ascaris and hookworm antigens induced predominantly Th2 cytokine responses, and levels of IL-5 and IL-13 were significantly correlated. The frequencies and levels of responses were higher for both Ascaris positive and hookworm positive infants compared with worm negative individuals, but very few infants made Trichuris-specific cytokine responses. Infants treated every 3 months with mebendazole showed a significantly lower prevalence of infection compared with placebo-treated controls at one year following baseline. At follow-up, cytokine responses to Ascaris and hookworm antigens, which remained Th2 biased, were increased compared with baseline but were not significantly affected by treatment. However, blood eosinophil levels, which were elevated in worm-infected children, were significantly lower in treated children. Thus the effect of deworming in this age group on anaemia and wasting malnutrition, which were replicated in this study, could not be explained by modification of cytokine responses but may be related to eosinophil function

Urinary norepinephrine and epinephrine excretion rates are heritable, but not associated with office and ambulatory blood pressure

Genetic and environmental contributions to urinary excretion rates of norepinephrine (UNEV) and epinephrine (UEV) and their association with blood pressure (BP) were investigated in 91 African American (mean age, 17.3 +/- 2.6 years) and 101 European American (mean age, 18.7 +/- 3.4 years) mono- and di-zygotic twins. Genetic modeling was performed using Mx software. UNEV (1.9 +/- 1.3 mu g h(-1)) and UEV (0.2 +/- 0.2 mu g h(-1)) were highly correlated (r = 0.81, P < 0.001). Significant heritabilities for UNEV (0.68) and UEV (0.74) without ethnic and gender effects were observed. The genetic correlation between UNEV and UEV was 0.86. There was no clear pattern of correlations for UNEV and UEV with BP measures in European Americans, but African Americans showed some inverse correlations of moderate size. Measurements of UNEV and UEV provide a viable method for the study of sympathetic tone and are substantially heritable. Hypertension Research (2012) 35, 1164-1170; doi:10.1038/hr.2012.104; published online 12 July 2012