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Risk factors for Toxocara spp. seroprevalence and its association with atopy and asthma phenotypes in school-age children in a small town and semi-rural areas of Northeast Brazil.

Silva, MB; Amor, ALM; Santos, LN; Galvão, AA; Oviedo Vera, AV; Silva, ES; Barbosa, CG; Gonçalves, MS; Cooper, PJ; Figueiredo, CA; et al. Silva, MB; Amor, ALM; Santos, LN; Galvão, AA; Oviedo Vera, AV; Silva, ES; Barbosa, CG; Gonçalves, MS; Cooper, PJ; Figueiredo, CA; Ribeiro, RDC; Alcântara-Neves, NM (2017) Risk factors for Toxocara spp. seroprevalence and its association with atopy and asthma phenotypes in school-age children in a small town and semi-rural areas of Northeast Brazil. Acta Tropica, 174. pp. 158-164. ISSN 1873-6254 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2016.04.005
SGUL Authors: Cooper, Philip John

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Abstract

Toxocara canis, Toxocara cati, are roundworms that live in the intestines of dogs and cats, respectively, and are predominantly agents of human toxocariasis. Studies have suggested that Toxocara spp. seroprevalence increases levels of total and aeroallergen-specific IgE (sIgE), asthma prevalence and asthma morbidity. Nevertheless, other work reported a negative association between Toxocara spp. seropositivity with skin hypersensititity and a positive association with sIgE. The objective of the present study was to evaluate risk factors for acquiring Toxocara spp. infection and to investigate possible significant association between its seroprevalence with atopy and asthma. Students from elementary schools, residents in a small town and its surroundings of Northeast Brazil, underwent blood sampling to measure levels of anti-Toxocara spp. IgG, peripheral blood eosinophils, and specific IgE to aeroallergens. We used univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses to assess possible risk factors for Toxocara spp. seropositivity and its association with atopy, wheeze/asthma with asthma phenotypes, in a sample of 791 elementary school children aged 6-13 years. Toxocara spp. seroprevalence reached 63.6%; 49.9% had sIgE; 7.2% and 3.3% had atopic wheeze/asthma and non-atopic wheeze/asthma respectively. Risk factors associated with Toxocara spp. seropositivity were: contact with dogs (adj. OR 2.33; 95% CI=1.70-3.19) and cats (adj. OR 3.09; 95% CI=2.10-4.55), and male sex (adj. OR 2.21; 95% CI=1.62-3.02). The presence of anti-Toxocara IgG was statistically associated with blood eosinophils >4% and >10% (adj. OR 1.84; 95% CI=1.33-2.55 and adj. OR 2.07; 95% CI=1.45-2.97, respectively), and atopy (adj. OR 2.00; 95% CI=1.49-2.68), but it was not associated with wheeze/asthma. Concluding, the results obtained in this study showing the association of Toxocara spp. seroprevalence with sIgE may suggest a possible immunological cross-reactivity between IgE epitopes from Toxocara spp. and aeroallergens.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: © 2016. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Keywords: Asthma, Atopy, Risk factors, Specific IgE, Toxocariasis, Asthma, Atopy, Risk factors, Specific IgE, Toxocariasis, Tropical Medicine, 11 Medical And Health Sciences, 06 Biological Sciences
SGUL Research Institute / Research Centre: Academic Structure > Infection and Immunity Research Institute (INII)
Journal or Publication Title: Acta Tropica
ISSN: 1873-6254
Language: ENG
Dates:
DateEvent
October 2017Published
11 April 2016Published Online
8 April 2016Accepted
Publisher License: Creative Commons: Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0
PubMed ID: 27080332
Go to PubMed abstract
URI: https://openaccess.sgul.ac.uk/id/eprint/108029
Publisher's version: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2016.04.005

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