The role of the macrophage in induction of immunosuppression in Trypanosoma congolense-infected cattle.

Impairment of T-cell function in Boran (Bos indicus) cattle during primary infection with Trypanosoma congolense ILNat 3.1 was found to occur in peripheral blood, spleen and, in particular, the lymph nodes. Lymph node cells from infected cattle failed to proliferate in response to mitogenic stimulus and suppressed proliferation of both normal peripheral blood mononuclear cells and lymph node cells in co-culture assays. The addition of indomethacin, to inhibit prostaglandin synthesis, had no effect on the ability of lymph node cells from infected cattle to suppress the proliferative response of responder cells from uninfected cattle. The supplementation of the culture media with catalase, which degrades hydrogen peroxide, either alone or in combination with indomethacin, also did not result in restoration of proliferation. This suggested the presence of suppressor cells in lymph nodes of infected cattle which exert their effects via a prostaglandin-independent mechanism. By depleting lymph node cells from infected cattle of the monocyte-macrophage population using a cell sorter it was possible to abrogate the previously observed immunosuppression, thus indicating a key role for these macrophages in the induction of trypanosome-associated immunosuppression.