Late-stage systemic immune effectors in Plasmodium berghei ANKA infection: biopterin and oxidative stress

To investigate the involvement of systemic oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of murine cerebral malaria, mice were infected with the ( ) ANKA 6653 strain. Serum tryptophan (Trp), kynurenine and urinary biopterin, liver, brain, spleen and serum superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitrite and nitrate (NOx) levels were measured on day 7 post-inoculation. Our data showed a significant decrease in SOD and an increase in GPx activity and MDA level in all the examined biological materials (p