Interplay between attenuation- and virulence-factors of Babesia Bovis and their contribution to the establishment of persistent infections in cattle
Gallego-Lopez, Gina M., Cooke, Brian M., and Suarez, Carlos E. (2019) Interplay between attenuation- and virulence-factors of Babesia Bovis and their contribution to the establishment of persistent infections in cattle. Pathogens, 8 (3). 97.
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Abstract
Bovine babesiosis is an acute and persistent tick-borne global disease caused mainly by the intraerythrocytic apicomplexan parasites Babesia bovis and B. bigemina. B. bovis infected erythrocytes sequester in blood capillaries of the host (cytoadhesion), causing malaria-like neurological signs. Cytoadhesion and antigenic variation in B. bovis are linked to the expression of members of the Variant Erythrocyte Surface Antigen (VESA) gene family. Animals that survive acute B. bovis infection and those vaccinated with attenuated strains remain persistently infected, suggesting that B. bovis parasites use immune escape mechanisms. However, attenuated B. bovis parasites do not cause neurological signs in vaccinated animals, indicating that virulence or attenuation factors play roles in modulating parasite virulence phenotypes. Artificial overexpression of the SBP2t11 protein, a defined attenuation factor, was associated with reduced cytoadhesion, suggesting a role for this protein as a key modulator of virulence in the parasite. Hereby, we propose a model that might be functional in the modulation of B. bovis virulence and persistence that relies on the interplay among SBP2t, VESA proteins, cytoadhesion, and the immune responses of the host. Elucidation of mechanisms used by the parasite to establish persistent infection will likely contribute to the design of new methods for the control of bovine babesiosis.
Item ID: | 61741 |
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Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
ISSN: | 2076-0817 |
Keywords: | Babesia, cytoadhesion, persistence, SBP2t11, sequestration, VESA |
Copyright Information: | © 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. |
Funders: | United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Australian Research Council (ARC) |
Projects and Grants: | USDA Agriculture Research Service Current Research Information System Project No. 2090-32000-039-00D, IDRC (Canada) project 108525-001, ARC DP180102584 |
Date Deposited: | 12 May 2020 23:28 |
FoR Codes: | 30 AGRICULTURAL, VETERINARY AND FOOD SCIENCES > 3009 Veterinary sciences > 300909 Veterinary parasitology @ 100% |
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