Circulating levels of the interleukin (IL)-4 receptor and of IL-18 in patients with Plasmodium falciparum malaria

Circulating levels of sIL-4R, IL-18 and IFN-γ were studied by ELISA in 36 Gabonese patients with Plasmodium falciparum malaria (29 children, 7 adults). Drug induced clearance of parasitemia, studied in 22 patients with mild disease, was accompanied by a rapid decrease of sIL-4R and IFN-γ to normal values and an increase of circulating IL-18, suggesting the downregulation of a type 2 biased immune response and a dissociated type 1 responsiveness while resolving parasitemia. Comparing subgroups with hyperparasitemia/severe anemia and mild malaria, children with severe malaria had significant higher levels of sIL-4R and IFN-γ, whereas IL-18 levels were not statistically different. Furthermore, among those children, higher levels of circulating IL-18 correlated with a lower degree of parasitemia.