Immune regulation by helminth parasites: cellular and molecular mechanisms.
Immunology was founded by studying the body's response to infectious microorganisms, and yet microbial prokaryotes only tell half the story of the immune system. Eukaryotic pathogens--protozoa, helminths, fungi and ectoparasites--have all been powerful selective forces for immune evolution. Often, as with lethal protozoal parasites, the focus has been on acute infections and the inflammatory responses they evoke. Long-lived parasites such as the helminths, however, are more remarkable for their ability to downregulate host immunity, protecting themselves from elimination and minimizing severe pathology in the host.
Maizels
Rick M
RM
Institute for Cell, Animal and Population Biology, University of Edinburgh, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JT, UK. r.maizels@ed.ac.uk
Yazdanbakhsh
Maria
M
D000818:Animals; D006373:Helminthiasis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D006376:Helminths / Q000276:immunology*; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007411:Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology; D051379:Mice; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology