Suppression of erythroid progenitor cells during malarial infection in Thai adults caused by serum inhibitor

Abstract

Summary The bone marrows of 21 Thai adults infected with Plasmodium falciparum malaria were cultured for CFU‐E and BFU‐E by using AB serum, autologous serum (parasitaemia) and autologous serum (post‐parasitaemia). Six patients had no complication and 15 patients had pulmonary, renal or haematologic complications. In the non‐complicated cases, sera during parasitaemia did not suppress the post‐parasitaema CFU‐E and BFU‐E. Post parasitaemia, there was suppression of CFU‐E by parasitaemia sera. In the complicated cases, the autologous sera during parasitaemia suppressed the growth of both CFU‐E and BFU‐E both during and after parasitaemia (P <0.05). The post‐parasitaemia sera had neither a suppressive nor a stimulating effect. In the complicated cases, the progenitor cells cultured from the bone marrow post‐parasitaemia were fewer in number than those cultured from the bone marrow during parasitaemia using the same sera. Two possible mechanisms of suppression are postulated, namely the reduction of erythropoietin or the increased tumour necrosis factor during malarial infection. Further studies to clarify this are being carried out. Copyright © 1993, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved