Clinical and immunological features of allergic bronchial asthma in opisthorchiasis

BACKGROUND: The ability of native hemozoin isolated from O. felineus to alter the cytokine profile of cells can be used to correct conditions associated with T2 polarization of the immune response, which primarily include atopic diseases, including allergic bronchial asthma. AIMS: To evaluate the immunogenic effect of O. felineus hemozoin against diseases with T2 polarization of the immune response in a dendritic cell  model.  METHODS: A cross-sectional, open-label case-control study included adolescents aged 12 to 18 years  living in Tomsk and the Tomsk region, patients with bronchial asthma and established sensitization to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus allergens, and children without established atopic disease and without registered helminth infestation. Evaluation of the presence of dendritic cell maturation markers CD86, CD83, CD40 after stimulation with D. pteronyssinus antigen and D. pteronyssinus antigen in combination with O. felineus hemozoin was performed using flow cytometry. A simultaneous study of cytokine production in the cell supernatant during co-cultivation with T cells was conducted and the levels of IFNy and IL-4 cytokines were determined using a multiplex analysis method. RESULTS: When analyzing the immunophenotypic characteristics of DC in the bronchial asthma group, it was found that the content of CD86, CD83, and CD40 was higher after stimulation of DC with both Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and hemozoin. In the group of BA patients, lower levels of IL-4 were recorded with stimulation with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and hemozoin than with stimulation with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus alone . Regarding INFy, stimulation of DC with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and hemozoin in the BA group was associated with higher levels of the cytokine. However, stimulation of DC in BA patients with only an allergen did not lead to changes in INFy production. CONCLUSIONS: The results of a study using a DC model of children with allergic asthma demonstrate that exposure to hemozoin from the liver fluke Opistorchis felineus is associated with a decrease in IL-4 production (a T2 immune response) and an increase in INFy production (a non-T2 immune response) by these cells. Hemozoin is likely an immunogenic excretory product of the helminth, capable of influencing the polarization of the immune response.