Progress on immunological regulation effects of schistosome egg glycoconjugates

Schistosomiasis is a chronic and endemic disease which seriously jeopardizes human health. The main pathological damage of chronic schistosomiasis is granuloma formation and liver cirrhosis resulted from immune response against schistosome egg antigens. It has long been recognized that g]ycoconjugates from schis-tosome eggs are the major immunogens in egg antigens. Furthermore, the glycoconjugates may play important roles in inducing immune responses that are responsible for liver pathological changes in schistosomiasis. This review summarized the recent progress on the structures of Schistosoma egg glyeoconjugates along with their im-munological regualtion effects. Key words: Schistosomiasis; Schistosorne egg antigen; Glycoconjugate; Immunological regulation