Alterations in influence of granuloma‐derived cytokines on fibrogenesis in the course of murine Schistosoma mansoni infection

Schistosomiasis is the main cause of hepatic fibrosis worldwide, yet its pathogenesis remains unknown. We previously reported that conditioned medium from cultures of hepatic egg granulomas (isolated from mice acutely infected with Schistosoma mansoni) can stimulate fibroblast proliferation and matrix production in vitro. We have proposed that initiation of hepatic fibrosis in this infection might be under the control of granuloma-derived cytokines. We now report that conditioned medium from cultures of schistosomal egg granulomas isolated from liver of chronically infected mice has reduced fibrogenic activity compared with medium from cultures of granulomas obtained from more acutely infected mice