Quantitative sequencing confirms VSG diversity as central to immune evasion by Trypanosoma brucei

Richard McCulloch; Mark C Field

doi:10.1016/j.pt.2015.05.001

Quantitative sequencing confirms VSG diversity as central to immune evasion by Trypanosoma brucei

Trends Parasitol. 2015 Aug;31(8):346-9. doi: 10.1016/j.pt.2015.05.001. Epub 2015 May 18.

Authors

Richard McCulloch¹, Mark C Field²

Affiliations

¹ Wellcome Trust Centre for Molecular Parasitology, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8TA, UK.
² Division of Biological Chemistry and Drug Discovery, University of Dundee, Dundee, DD1 5EH, UK. Electronic address: mfield@mac.com.

Abstract

Antigenic variation is central to the virulence of African trypanosomes, where the VSG coat is used to evade the host immune system. Recent advances in technology have now allowed more secrets of this system to emerge, with the surprising insight that a broad repertoire of VSGs is rapidly expressed. This has major implications for how the parasite must evade the host immune response.

Keywords: Trypanosoma brucei; VSG; antigenic variation; immune evasion; recombination.

MeSH terms

Antigenic Variation* / genetics
Antigenic Variation* / immunology
Host-Parasite Interactions / immunology*
Humans
Immune Evasion* / genetics
Immune Evasion* / immunology
Trypanosoma brucei brucei* / genetics
Trypanosoma brucei brucei* / immunology
Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma* / genetics
Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma* / immunology

Substances

Variant Surface Glycoproteins, Trypanosoma

Grants and funding

104111/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom