1991 Volume 53 Issue 3 Pages 391-394
Pathogenesis of anemia in the calves infected with Theileria sergenti was investigated from the viewpoint of erythrocyte survival decrease in the circulating blood. For investigation of erythrocyte survival a method of erythrocyte labelling with non-radioactive chromium (50Cr) was utilized. It was found that (1) the erythrocyte survival decreased markedly in the T. sergenti-infected calves compared with that in the uninfected calves; the survival rate of 25.7% for infected calves and 86.0% for uninfected ones on the fourth day after re-introduction of the labelled erythrocytes into the original donors, and that (2) the survival of non-parasitized erythrocytes in the infected calves was also decreased, which indicates no obvious relationship between parasitism and decrease in survival of erythrocytes.