T cell control of malaria pathogenesis.
Transmission of Plasmodium from mosquito to the mammalian host leads to a clinically silent pre-erythrocytic stage of malaria infection, and subsequent cyclical erythrocytic invasion associated with disease. Recent evidence demonstrates that it is the interplay between CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, and the regulation of their response, throughout infection that dictates immunity and the pathogenesis of malaria. The elicited T cell response is context dependent, influenced by diverse host and parasite factors, necessitating the development of a unifying model of T cell potential during Plasmodium infection. Only then can we predict their capacity to dictate the outcome of human disease.
Division of Parasitology, MRC National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London, United Kingdom.
Philip J
PJ
Spence
Jean
J
Langhorne
D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000502:physiology*; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000276:immunology*; D010965:Plasmodium malariae / Q000276:immunology*