LITOMOSOIDES-CARINII - MACROFILARIAE-DERIVED GLYCOLIPIDS - CHROMATOGRAPHY, SEROLOGY AND POTENTIAL IN THE EVALUATION OF ANTHELMINTIC EFFICACY

A preliminary characterization of the glycolipids of Litomosoides cari nii macrofilariae, resolved according to their chromatographic, chemic al and serological properties, has been performed. Emphasis has been p laced on the neutral fraction glycolipids. These are separable on thin -layer chromatography into two groups of fast and slow migrating band components, that differ in their migration, differential chemical stai ning and serological traits, respectively. Serological analyses have b een accomplished by thin-layer chromatography immunostaining and ELISA . Only components of the slow migrating band group react with infectio n serum from Litomosoides carinii-infected Mastomys coucha. Cross-reac tivity experiments with homologous and heterologous infection sera of various helminthiases indicate that, epitopes bound to the neutral gly colipid fraction show structural similarity within the Nematoda, but n ot to the Cestoda or Trematoda. The dynamic development of specific Ig -, IgG- and IgM-anti-neutral glycolipid fraction antibody levels were correlated with the different progression of L. carinii and Brugia mal ayi infections in the multimammate rat, Mastomys coucha. The reduction in the dynamics of IgG- and IgM-antibody levels on chemotherapeutic t reatment with the filaricides flubendazole and CGP 20376 has been rela ted to their macrofilaricide-activity.