Research Article Macrophage P2X7 Receptor Function Is Reduced during Schistosomiasis: Putative Role of TGF-

Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Schistosomiasis is a chronic inflammatory disease whose macrophages are involved in immunopathology modulation. Although P2X7 receptor signaling plays an important role in inflammatory responses mediated by macrophages, no reports have examined the role of P2X7 receptors inmacrophage function during schistosomiasis.Thus, we evaluated P2X7 receptor function in peritoneal macrophages during schistosomiasis using an ATP-induced permeabilization assay and measurements of the intracellular Ca2+ concentration. ATP treatment induced significantly less permeabilization in macrophages from S. mansoni-infected mice than in control cells from uninfected animals. Furthermore, P2X7-mediated increases in intracellular Ca2+ levels were also reduced in macrophages from infected mice. TGF