Do basophils play a role in immunity against parasites?
The link between parasites and eosinophilia has been known for more than a century, although the role of eosinophils in host protection is still an open issue. Much less appreciated, however, is the concurrent systemic induction of a related cell type, the basophil, in parasitized hosts. To date, little is known about the role of basophils in immunity against parasites, but recent evidence points to a possible crucial role in the initiation of T-helper type 2 responses in the host. In this article, we review the current understanding of parasitic infections and basophils and discuss their putative role in immunity.
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Institute of Cell, Animal and Population Biology, University of Edinburgh, West Mains Road, EH9 3JT, Edinburgh, UK. franco.falcone@ed.ac.uk
Pritchard
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Gibbs
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D000818:Animals; D001491:Basophils / Q000276:immunology*; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D006376:Helminths / Q000276:immunology*; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D006801:Humans; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D013987:Ticks / Q000276:immunology