Haematological, blood glucose and insulin profile in sprague-dawley rats experimentally infected with trichinella Zimbabwensis and plasmodium berghei anka.

Abstract

Malaria and helminth co-infection have been widely reported by other researchers. Despite the increasing knowledge on co-infection, the impact of helminths and malaria on humans and laboratory animal models remains uncertain. Furthermore, studies have associated co-infection to the induction of hypoglycemia. Accordingly, the effect of Plasmodium berghei ANKA and Trichinella zimbabwensis co-infection on haematology, blood glucose and insulin profiles was investigated in male Sprague-Dawley rats. The study was investigated using 168 Sprague-Dawley rats that were assigned into four groups of 42 rats each; control (C), P. berghei (Pb), T. zimbabwensis (Tz) and P. berghei (Pb) + T. zimbabwensis (Tz) co-infection groups. The Tz group was orally infected with 3 muscle larvae/g animal body weight of Tz strain (Code ISS1209) at day 0. The Pb group received (1×105 PRBCs) of P. berghei ANKA using intraperitoneal injection and Pb + Tz co-infection group received 3 muscle larvae/g animal body weight at day 0 followed by intraperitoneal injection of 1×105 PRBCs at day 28 post-infection with Tz while the Control group was uninfected. Plasmodium berghei parasitaemia (%), Tz adult worms (AWs) and muscle larvae (ML), blood glucose, liver and muscle glycogen, insulin concentration as well as the cumulative body weight were determined. Results showed a significant increase in parasitaemia for Pb + Tz co-infection at day 3 and 4 PI compared to Pb group. Adult Tz worms and ML recovered showed no significant difference (P > 0.05) between the co-infection and the Pb group (P > 0.05). Blood glucose levels for co-infected group were also not significantly different compared to the control although the Pb group showed a decrease in blood glucose at day 7 and 14 PI. The co-infection group showed a higher mean glycogen accumulation compared to Tz group although there was no significant difference between the two groups. Tz group and Pb + Tz co-infection groups showed a decrease in liver glycogen at day 7 Pl and at day 14 PI. The Pb + Tz co-infection group showed a significant decrease in glycogen compared to the control. After Pb infection, there was a decline in insulin for both Tz and Pb + Tz co-infection whereas at day 7 only the Pb + Tz co-infection group presented a decrease in insulin compared to the control. Therefore, the current study revealed that co-infection increased Pb parasitaemia and glycogen levels without decreasing the host blood glucose concentration. Early increase in Pb parasitaemia demonstrated that co-infection could alleviate parasitaemia severity in the host.