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Toxocara Seropositivity, Atopy and Wheezing in Children Living in Poor Neighbourhoods in Urban Latin American

Mendonça, LR; Veiga, RV; Dattoli, VC; Figueiredo, CA; Fiaccone, R; Santos, J; Cruz, ÁA; Rodrigues, LC; Cooper, PJ; Pontes-de-Carvalho, LC; et al. Mendonça, LR; Veiga, RV; Dattoli, VC; Figueiredo, CA; Fiaccone, R; Santos, J; Cruz, ÁA; Rodrigues, LC; Cooper, PJ; Pontes-de-Carvalho, LC; Barreto, ML; Alcantara-Neves, NM (2012) Toxocara Seropositivity, Atopy and Wheezing in Children Living in Poor Neighbourhoods in Urban Latin American. PLOS NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES, 6 (11). e1886 (1)- e1886 (9). ISSN 1935-2735 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001886
SGUL Authors: Cooper, Philip John

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Abstract

Background: Toxocara canis and T. cati are parasites of dogs and cats, respectively, that infect humans and cause human toxocariasis. Infection may cause asthma-like symptoms but is often asymptomatic and is associated with a marked eosinophilia. Previous epidemiological studies indicate that T. canis infection may be associated with the development of atopy and asthma. Objectives: To investigate possible associations between Toxocara spp. seropositivity and atopy and childhood wheezing in a population of children living in non-affluent areas of a large Latin American city. Methods: The study was conducted in the city of Salvador, Brazil. Data on wheezing symptoms were collected by questionnaire, and atopy was measured by the presence of aeroallergen-specific IgE (sIgE). Skin prick test (SPT), total IgE and peripheral eosinophilia were measured. Toxocara seropositivity was determined by the presence of anti-Toxocara IgG antibodies, and intestinal helminth infections were determined by stool microscopy. Findings: Children aged 4 to 11 years were studied, of whom 47% were seropositive for anti-Toxocara IgG; eosinophilia .4% occurred in 74.2% and .10% in 25.4%; 59.6% had elevated levels of total IgE; 36.8% had sIgE$0.70 kU/L and 30.4% had SPT for at least one aeroallergen; 22.4% had current wheezing symptoms. Anti-Toxocara IgG was positively associated with elevated eosinophils counts, total IgE and the presence of specific IgE to aeroallergens but was inversely associated with skin prick test reactivity. Conclusion: The prevalence of Toxocara seropositivity was high in the studied population of children living in conditions of poverty in urban Brazil. Toxocara infection, although associated with total IgE, sIgE and eosinophilia, may prevent the development of skin hypersensitivity to aeroallergens, possibly through increased polyclonal IgE and the induction of a modified Th2 immune reaction.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: Copyright: 2012 Mendonc¸a et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Keywords: Animals, Antibodies, Helminth, Brazil, Cats, Child, Child, Preschool, Dogs, Eosinophilia, Female, Humans, Hypersensitivity, Immediate, Immunoglobulin E, Immunoglobulin G, Male, Poverty Areas, Prevalence, Questionnaires, Respiratory Sounds, Skin Tests, Toxocara, Toxocariasis, Urban Population, Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Infectious Diseases, Parasitology, Tropical Medicine, PARASITOLOGY, TROPICAL MEDICINE, CHRONIC HELMINTH INFECTIONS, CANIS INFECTION, CROSS-REACTIVITY, SCHOOL-CHILDREN, RISK-FACTORS, RURAL AREA, ASTHMA, SEROPREVALENCE, IGE, PREVALENCE, Tropical Medicine, 06 Biological Sciences, 11 Medical And Health Sciences
SGUL Research Institute / Research Centre: Academic Structure > Infection and Immunity Research Institute (INII)
Journal or Publication Title: PLOS NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES
ISSN: 1935-2735
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Dates:
DateEvent
1 November 2012Published
Web of Science ID: WOS:000311888900015
URI: https://openaccess.sgul.ac.uk/id/eprint/107052
Publisher's version: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0001886

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