INVESTIGADORES
PRUCCA Cesar German
artículos
Título:
Regulation of Antigenic Variation in Giardia lamblia
Autor/es:
CESAR G. PRUCCA; FERNANDO D. RIVERO; HUGO D. LUJAN
Revista:
ANNUAL REVIEW OF MICROBIOLOGY
Editorial:
ANNUAL REVIEWS
Referencias:
Año: 2011 vol. 65 p. 611 - 630
ISSN:
0066-4227
Resumen:
Antigenic variation, a clonal phenotypic variation developed by microorganisms, involves the permanent switching of homologous, antigenically different cell surface molecules. In pathogenic microorganisms, antigenic variation is often described as a mechanism to evade the host immune system and, therefore, responsible for the generation of chronic and/or recurrent infections. However, antigenic variation has also been involved in expanding host diversity and differential courses of the diseases. The intestinal protozoan parasite Giardia lamblia undergoes antigenic variation through the continuous exchange of approximately 200 members of variant-specific surface proteins (VSPs). Here we review the principal issues regarding the significance of antigenic variation during Giardia infections, the particular features of the VSPs, the current knowledge on the mechanisms that regulate this process, as well as the relevance of disrupting antigenic variation as a novel approach to design effective anti-parasitic vaccines.