The local cellular immune response in experimental leishmaniasis

Zanvil Alexander Cohn 1926-1993

Zanvil Alexander Cohn, an editor of this Journal since 1973, died suddenly on June 28, 1993. Cohn is best known as the father of the current era of macrophage biology. Many of his scientific accomplishments are recounted here, beginning with seminal studies on the granules of phagocytes that were performed with his close colleague and former editor of this Journal, James Hirsch. Cohn and Hirsch identified the granules as lysosomes that discharged their contents of digestive enzymes into vacuoles containing phagocytosed microbes. These findings were part of the formative era of cell biology and initiated the modern study of endocytosis and cell-mediated resistance to infection. Cohn further explored the endocytic apparatus in pioneering studies of the mouse peritoneal macrophage in culture. He described vesicular inputs from the cell surface and Golgi apparatus and documented the thoroughness of substrate digestion within lysosomal vacuoles that would only permit the egress of monosaccharides and amino acids. These discoveries created a vigorous environment for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and junior and visiting faculty. Some of the major findings that emerged from Cohn's collaborations included the radioiodination of the plasma membrane for studies of composition and turnover; membrane recycling during endocytosis; the origin of the mononuclear phagocyte system in situ; the discovery of the dendritic cell system of antigen-presenting cells; the macrophage as a secretory cell, including the release of proteases and large amounts of prostaglandins and leukotrienes; several defined parameters of macrophage activation, especially the ability of T cell-derived lymphokines to enhance killing of tumor cells and intracellular protozoa; the granule discharge mechanism whereby cytotoxic lymphocytes release the pore-forming protein perforin; the signaling of macrophages via myristoylated substrates of protein kinase C; and a tissue culture model in which monocytes emigrate across tight endothelial junctions. In 1983, Cohn turned to a long-standing goal of exploring host resistance directly in humans. He studied leprosy, focusing on the disease site, the parasitized macrophages of the skin. He injected recombinant lymphokines into the skin and found that these molecules elicited several cell-mediated responses. Seeing this potential to enhance host defense in patients, Cohn was extending his clinical studies to AIDS and tuberculosis. Zanvil Cohn was a consummate physician-scientist who nurtured the relationship between cell biology and infectious disease.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Immunological and histological study of T- and B-lymphocyte activity in canine visceral leishmaniosis

Lymphocyte activity during canine leishmaniosis was studied by histological and immunological methods in experimental and natural infections. Eight dogs were inoculated with 5 x 10(7) promastigotes of Leishmania infantum, LEM 75, zimodeme MON-1, and maintained for 110 days post-infection. Another eight dogs with advanced natural infection were identified by parasitological and serological methods. Three techniques were used: the lymphocyte transformation test (LTT) to study T-cell activity, immunofluorescence assay and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to measure antibody production (B-cell activity), and methyl green-pyronin staining to assess tissue responses of lymphocytes. There was a noticeable B-cell response, reflected both histologically and immunologically. High percentages of activated lymphocytes and plasma cells were evident in lymphoid organs and production of specific antibodies was seen throughout the infection. LTT results showed a T-cell unresponsiveness during canine leishmaniosis. These same immunohistological features were observed, although to different degrees, in both experimental and natural infections.

Role of T cell subsets during the recall of immunologic memory toLeishmania major

The contributions of different T cell subpopulations to the maintenance of immunity during secondary Leishmania major infections were analyzed in healed, resistant animals by depletion of T cell subsets in vivo. The strong delayed-type hypersensitivity mounted in immune genetically resistant mice upon challenge with viable promastigotes was mediated by both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Each T cell subpopulation alone contributes, although to a different extent, to the resolution of secondary lesions; both subsets, however, are required for an efficient and rapid healing of the secondary lesions and the decrease in the parasite burden in infected tissues. The results indicate that in immune, genetically resistant CBA mice, the activity of both T cell subsets is required for successful resistance to reinfection and an efficient maintenance of immunity.