Abstract
Immune-complex glomerular nephritis (ICGN) is known to develop during malarial infections, but little is known of its impact on renal function. A total of 24 male BALB/c mice were infected withPlasmodium berghei, and measurements of the glomerular filtration rate (GFR), parasitemia, and plasma solute concentrations were made on days 0, 7, 14, and 19 post-infection. Identical observations were made on 24 uninfected controls. The GFR declined progressively in infected mice from a mean of 201±2.1 (day 0) to 51±3 μl/min (day 19), whereas parasitemia rose to 47%±4.2% infected erythrocytes. In controls, the GFR remained unchanged, averaging 205±3.4 μl/min. Plasma osmolality rose in infected mice (326±1 vs 310±0.6 mosmol/kg in controls) as a result of increased chloride (123±0.7 vs 117±0.6 mEq/l) and urea (17.8±2.8 vs 9.3±0.7 mM/l levels). The data reveal a substantial deterioration of renal function during the course of a malarial infection that is short of outright renal failure.
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Haines, H., Farmer, J.N. Glomerular filtration rate and plasma solutes in BALB/c mice infected withPlasmodium berghei . Parasitol Res 77, 411–414 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00931636
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00931636