AUTHOR=Pereira Lais , Oliveira Fabiano , Townsend Shannon , Metangmo Sonia , Meneses Claudio , Moore Ian N. , Brodskyn Claudia I. , Valenzuela Jesus G. , Magez Stefan , Kamhawi Shaden 

TITLE=Coinfection With Trypanosoma brucei Confers Protection Against Cutaneous Leishmaniasis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2018

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2018.02855

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2018.02855

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=Abstract
Infection with certain bacteria, parasites and viruses alters the host immune system to Leishmania major influencing disease outcome. Here, we determined the outcome of a chronic infection with Trypanosoma brucei brucei on cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) caused by L. major. C57BL/6 mice infected with T. b. brucei were given a sub-curative treatment with diminazene aceturate then coinfected with L. major¬ by vector bites. Our results revealed that infection with T. b. brucei controls CL pathology. Compared to controls, coinfected mice showed a significant decrease in lesion size (P<0.05) up to 6 weeks post-infection and a significant decrease in parasite burden (P<0.0001) at 3 weeks post-infection. Protection against L. major resulted from a non-specific activation of T cells by trypanosomes. This induced a strong immune response characterized by IFN-γ production at the site of bites and systemically, creating a hostile inflammatory environment for L. major parasites and conferring protection from CL.