The role of extracellular vesicles in Plasmodium and other protozoan parasites

PY Mantel, M Marti - Cellular microbiology, 2014 - Wiley Online Library
Cellular microbiology, 2014Wiley Online Library
Protozoan parasites and other microorganisms use various pathways to communicate within
their own populations and to manipulate their outside environments, with the ultimate goal of
balancing the rate of growth and transmission. In higher eukaryotes, including humans,
circulating extracellular vesicles are increasingly recognized as key mediators of
physiological and pathological processes. Recent evidence suggests that protozoan
parasites, including those responsible for major human diseases such as malaria and C …
Summary
Protozoan parasites and other microorganisms use various pathways to communicate within their own populations and to manipulate their outside environments, with the ultimate goal of balancing the rate of growth and transmission. In higher eukaryotes, including humans, circulating extracellular vesicles are increasingly recognized as key mediators of physiological and pathological processes. Recent evidence suggests that protozoan parasites, including those responsible for major human diseases such as malaria and Chagas disease, use similar machinery. Indeed, intracellular and extracellular protozoan parasites secrete extracellular vesicles to promote growth and induce transmission, to evade the host immune system, and to manipulate the microenvironment. In this review we will discuss the general pathways of extracellular vesicle biogenesis and their functions in protozoan infections.
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