High resistance of water buffalo against reinfection with Schistosoma japonicum

Abstract Schistosomiasis is a zoonotic parasitic disease threatening tens of millions people and farm animals. Water buffalos are a major reservoir for schistosomiasis and a control target. Epidemiological surveys suggest that buffalos can develop resistance against Schistosoma japonicum reinfection. In the present paper, relative to control animals, we report an over 97% worm burden reduction after two rounds of infection with S. japonicum and treatment with Praziquantel (PZQ). Relative to control animals, shorter length of female worms, and lower egg counts (over 87.7% reduction rates) were observed in reinfected buffalos. We also found that the reinfected buffalos had significantly higher levels of IL-4, IL-10, and IFN-γ, 4–9 weeks after the secondary infection, and a significantly higher level of specific IgG antibodies before infection. Our results confirmed that after infection buffalos develop resistance against S. japonicum reinfection, and that this resistance is mainly due to acquired immunity. These findings may aid in the future vaccine design for water buffalos.