The Protective Effect of the Soluble Egg Antigen of Schistosoma japonicum in A Mouse Skin Transplantation Model

Abstract

BackgroundOrgan transplantation is currently an effective method for treating organ failure. Long-term use of immunosuppressive drugs has huge side effects, which severely restricts the long-term survival of patients.Schistosomacan affect the host’s immune system by synthesizing, secreting, or excreting a variety of immunomodulatory molecules, but its role in transplantation was not well defined. In order to explore whetherSchistosoma-related products can suppress rejection and induce long-term survival of the transplant, we used soluble egg antigen (SEA) ofSchistosoma japonicumin mouse skin transplantation models.Materials and methodsEach mouse was intraperitoneally injected with 100 μg of SEA three times a week for four consecutive weeks before allogenic skin transplant. Skin transplants were performed on day 0 to observe graft survival. Pathological examination of skin grafts was conducted 7 days post transplantation. The skin grafts were subjected to mRNA sequencing. Bioinformatics analysis was conducted and the expression of hub genes was verified by qPCR. Flow cytometry analysis was performed to evaluate the immune status and validate the results from bioinformatic analysis.ResultsThe mean survival time (MST) of mouse skin grafts in the SEA-treated group was 11.67 ± 0.69 days, while that of the control group was 8.00 ± 0.36 days. Pathological analysis showed thatSjSEA treatment led to reduced inflammatory infiltration within skin grafts 7 days after allogenic skin transplantation. Bioinformatics analysis identified 86 DEGs between theSjSEA treatment group and the control group, including 39 upregulated genes and 47 downregulated genes. Further analysis revealed thatSjSEA mediated regulation on cellular response to interferon-γ, activation of IL-17 signaling and chemokine signaling pathways, as well as cytokine–cytokine receptor interaction. Flow cytometry analysis showed that SEA treatment led to higher percentages of CD4+IL-4+T cells and CD4+Foxp3+T cells and decreased CD4+IFN-γ+T cells in skin transplantation.ConclusionSjSEA treatment suppressed rejection and prolonged skin graft survival by regulating immune responses.SjSEA treatment might be a potential new therapeutic strategy to facilitate anti-rejection therapy and even to induce tolerance.