Hall, James Peter John 
ORCID: 0000-0002-4896-4592 and Plenderleith, Lindsey
(2014)
Withstanding the Challenges of Host Immunity: Antigenic Variation and the Trypanosome Surface Coat.
In:
Trypanosomes and Trypanosomiasis.
Springer Vienna, pp. 61-87.
ISBN 9783709115558, 3709115558
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JHLP Chapter.pdf - Author Accepted Manuscript Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Prolonged survival in the face of host immunity has been a major force shaping the biology and evolution of the African trypanosomes, and nowhere are the effects of this force more apparent than in the antigenic variation of the trypanosome variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) coat. The coat protects the trypanosome within it from immune effectors, and spontaneous and stochastic events occurring at the molecular level cause individual trypanosomes to change the VSG variant they are expressing. The consequence of this switching at the population level is a diverse population that can pre-empt the specific immune responses that arise against VSG. The template for changes to VSG is an extensive archive of silent VSG genes and pseudogenes. VSG from the archive are activated not only as full-length genes but also through the combination of segments to form mosaic VSG genes, a process that augments the potential for antigenic variation by introducing combinatorial variation and allowing VSG pseudogenes to be used. The main part of the archive occupies subtelomeres and so is itself prone to mutation and rapid evolution, which are important features when superinfection or reinfection of partially immune hosts is necessary. The antigenic variation 'diversity phenotype' is thus a multifaceted one, enlisting and coordinating fundamental mechanisms of cell biology to bring about a process that unfolds across populations, thereby facilitating the success of the African trypanosomes.
| Item Type: | Book Section |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Medical |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences |
| Depositing User: | Symplectic Admin |
| Date Deposited: | 12 May 2021 08:25 |
| Last Modified: | 18 Jan 2023 22:47 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/978-3-7091-1556-5_3 |
| Related URLs: | |
| URI: | https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3122331 |
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