EXPERIMENTAL MURINE SCHISTOSOMIASIS AND THYROID-FUNCTION

In humans the hepatosplenic form of schistosomiasis may be associated with some degree of somatosexual underdevelopment. In the present stud y we induced an experimental hepatosplenic form of schistosomiasis by infecting 21-day old mice with the Sao Lourenco da Mata-PE strain of S chistosoma mansoni and evaluated thyroid function and its relationship with somatosexual development. Plasma levels of T3 and T4 were determ ined in 115-day old male albino Swiss mice by radioimmunoassay as a me asure of thyroid function. Prepuberal infection with S. mansoni result ed in significant increases in liver (74%) and spleen (138%) weights, although there were no changes in animal growth or plasma T3 and T4 co ncentrations under the experimental conditions used. The present study demonstrates that prepuberal infection of mice with S. mansoni induce s the development of a hepatosplenic form of schistosomiasis during ad ult life with apparently normal thyroid function.