INTESTINAL TRANSPORT AND CATABOLISM OF IGE - MAJOR BLOOD-INDEPENDENT PATHWAY OF IGE DISSEMINATION DURING A TRICHINELLA-SPIRALIS INFECTION OF RATS

Previous work has shown that Trichinella spiralis-infected rats transp ort IgE from plasma to intestinal tissue and fluids, In this study we quantitate IgE transport to the gut and circulation during T. spiralis infection in rats, Total IgE levels in intestinal fluid from infected rats were elevated by 4 days post-infection (dpi), but were not eleva ted in serum and lymph until 7 dpi, IgE levels in intestinal fluid ran ged from 1 to 6 mu g between 10 and 21 dpi, and serum and lymph IgE le vels ranged from 100 to 200 ng/ml, Immunoprecipitation of intestinal f luid and enterocyte lysate at 11 dpi showed a protein of 190 kDa that was recognized by mouse anti-rat IgE-MARE-1 in Western blots, This pro tein was removed from intestinal wash samples with anti-IgE (AZ)-Sepha rose, The half-life of intact IgE in the intestinal lumen of rats 10 d ays after infection was 3.25 min, In serum, the half-life of IgE was 5 h. Analysis of IgE production and consumption in 10-day T. spiralis i nfected rats showed that about 4.67 mu g IgE/day entered the serum, wh ile 2570.00 mu g IgE/day entered the intestinal lumen, The IgE present in serum 10 days after T. spiralis infection originated in the gut an d/or associated lymphoid tissue and was transported to the circulation via thoracic duct lymph, However, most IgE produced in the intestine was transported to the gut lumen at a rate that exceeded transport to plasma by a factor of several-hundredfold.