Fig. 1.

IL-5 production and IL-5 mRNA semiquantification in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) after mitogenic or antigenic exposure. (a) The secretion of IL-5 was assessed in PBMC culture supernatants from nine patients infected with Echinococcus multilocularis, three subjects with abortive alveolar echinococcosis (AE), seven subjects from an endemic area with positive E. multilocularis serologies, and nine control subjects with negative E. multilocularis serologies. Values are means ± s.e.m. *P < 0·05 non-stimulated versus stimulated PBMC (Wilcoxon signed rank test); **significant difference between progressive AE group and the other groups; †significant difference between control group and abortive AE group (Kruskall–Wallis test). (b) IL-5 mRNA expression was semiquantified after polymerase chain reaction amplification of cDNA. Results are expressed as a ratio: percentage of IL-5 mRNA expression for 100% β-actin expression. A total of six patients with progressive AE, three subjects with abortive AE, three subjects who had positive E. multilocularis serologies but no parasitic lesions, and six healthy control donors who had negative E. multilocularis serologies were analysed. Control medium, no stimulation; Emc Ag, stimulation with a crude extract antigen of E. multilocularis; Emf Ag, stimulation with the purified vesicular fluid antigen; EmAp Ag, stimulation with the alkaline phosphatase of E. multilocularis; PHA, stimulation with the non-specific mitogen, phytohaemagglutinin.