Human Trichuris-specific antibody responses in vaccinated hu-PBL-SCID mice

Trichuris trichiura is a highly prevalent intestinal helminth of humans with a well-characterized animal model, Trichuris muris in the mouse. Relating the murine work back to the human infection has been difficult, however, as many of the questions addressed in the mouse cannot be asked in humans. The ability to reconstitute a mouse with a human immune system could help bridge this gap, allowing a human immune response to be studied under a controllable laboratory environment. In this study, we demonstrate that severe combined immunodeficient mice engrafted with naïve human peripheral blood lymphocytes are capable of mounting a Trichuris specific human antibody response after vaccination with T. muris antigens. The phenotype of the response depended on the vaccinating antigen with excretory/secretory antigens eliciting a human immunoglobulin IgG2 response, and whole worm homogenate stimulating IgG1 and IgG2 responses. Vaccination with homogenate also enhanced a human IgG response against a 66-kDa component of T. muris homogenate in a donor-dependent manner. This work shows the potential of using the humanized mouse model for studying the immune responses of humans living in T. trichiura endemic areas.