Serum cytokine profiles in patients with Plasmodium vivax malaria who presented with and without hyperpyrexia were compared by a retrospective review of the medical records of the consecutive patients seen at the military hospitals near the demilitarized zone in the Republic of Korea from April 2000 through October 2001. Of 162 male patients studied, 120 (86.4%) presented with hyperpyrexia (i.e., an axillary temperature Ն 40°C). The mean ± SEM ages of the patients with and without hyperpyrexia were 21.5 ± 0.14 and 21.9 ± 0.39 years, respectively (P ‫ס‬ 0.33). The mean ± SEM concentrations of serum interleukin (IL)-6 (379.7 ± 44.1 pg/mL versus 105.4 ± 26.8 pg/mL; P ‫ס‬ 0.002), IL-10 (583.4 ± 58.2 pg/mL versus 142.4 ± 39.7 pg/mL; P ‫ס‬ 0.0001), and interferon-␥ (312.6 ± 33.9 pg/mL versus 112.9 ± 27.1 pg/mL; P ‫ס‬ 0.0001) were significantly higher in patients with hyperpyrexia compared with those without hyperpyrexia. The mean ± SEM concentrations of serum tumor necrosis factor-␣ were 155.5 ± 54.5 pg/mL and 109.9 ± 29.3 pg/mL (P ‫ס‬ 0.27) in patients who presented with and without hyperpyrexia, respectively. Further studies are needed to examine whether serum concentrations of these cytokines also parallel their concentrations at the tissue sites of their production and action.

The phenomenon of consistent male dominance in typhoid ileal perforation (TIP) is not well understood. It cannot be explained on the basis of microbial virulence, Peyer’s patch anatomy, ileal wall thickness, gastric acidity, host genetic factors, or sex-linked bias in hospital attendance. The cytokine response to an intestinal infection in males is predominantly proinflammatory as compared with that in females, presumably due to differences in the sex hormonal milieu. Sex hormone receptors have been detected on lymphocytes and macrophages, including on Peyer’s patches, inflammation of which (probably similar to the Shwartzman reaction/Koch phenomenon) is the forerunner of TIP, and is not excluded from the regulatory effects of sex hormones. Hormonal control of host-pathogen interaction may override genetic control. Environmental exposure to Salmonella typhi may be more frequent in males, presumably due to sex-linked differences in hygiene practices and dining-out behavior. A plausible explanation of male dominance in TIP could include sex-linked differences in the degree of natural exposure of Peyer’s patches to S. typhi. An alternative explanation may include sexual dimorphism in host inflammatory response patterns in Peyer’s patches that have been induced by S. typhi. Both hypotheses are testable.

Comprehensive serological and histopathological examinations of 47 free living European bison (Bison bonasus Linnaeus, 1758) were performed. Of these animals, 36 were serologically positive due to Coxiella brrnetii, which confirmed the presence of Q fever epizootic foci in this population of wild animals in Poland.The presence of multiple foci of mononuclear cells typical for Q fever was a consistent finding in all tissues of the majority of C. burnetii seropositive animals under study. Pathomorphological changes observed in myocardium as the focal coagulation necrosis, and in kidneys, resembled the glomerular lesion observed in humans with Q fever, as well as in the experimental Q-fever infections in laboratory animals. These changes were absent in bison showing a C. burnetii seronegative reaction.