Malaria J
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Comparative Study
Increased polyclonal immunoglobulin reactivity toward human and bacterial proteins is associated with clinical protection in human Plasmodium infection.
Polyclonal B-cell activation is well known to occur in Plasmodium infections, but its role in pathogenesis or protection remains unclear. However, protective properties of natural antibodies have previously been demonstrated in other contexts. ⋯ The observed difference in polyclonal antibody production seems related to intrinsic activation states of infected individuals, rather than to parasite-antigen specific immune responses. However, it appears influenced by preceding stimuli. This supports the idea that acquired clinical immunity may not exclusively depend on antigen-specific responses, but also on the individual polyclonal reaction.