Abstract
Babesia divergens is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that causes zoonotic disease. Central to its pathogenesis is the ability of the parasite to invade host red blood cells of diverse species, and, once in the host blood stream, to manipulate the composition of its population to allow it to endure unfavorable conditions. Here we will review key in vitro studies relating to the survival strategies that B. divergens adopts during its intraerythrocytic development to persist and how proliferation is restored in the parasite population once optimum conditions return.
Highlights
Central to its pathogenesis is the ability of the parasite to invade host red blood cells of diverse species, and, once in the host blood stream, to manipulate the composition of its population to allow it to endure unfavorable conditions
Babesiosis has long been recognized as an economically important disease of cattle, but only in the last 30 years some species of Babesia have been recognized as important pathogens in man—B. divergens being one such agent
B. divergens, a natural pathogen of cattle, is the main pathogen of human babesiosis in Europe [3,4,5], with the majority of cases being reported in the British Isles and France [6]
Summary
Babesiosis shows a worldwide distribution and affects a wide variety of many mammalian species. Because Ixodidae ticks feed only once per instar [7], Babesia has developed the ability to persist through successive tick developmental stages, referred to as transstadial or transovarial transmission [8] This allows for the spread of the parasite from a single maternal tick to thousands of offspring [8]. 2 of 8 with the worldwide distribution of tick vectors, makes Babesia the most common parasite of free-living and/or parasite reservoirs even during the absence of the vertebrate host [9]. As babesiosis became an important human medical condition, its persistence via together with the worldwide distribution of tick vectors, makes Babesia the most common parasite other modes of transmission became apparent. Infected RBCs highlighted in yellow represent the diversity of stages and different parasite loads that can stay as the previous stage or keep proliferating within the same host cell to increase the reservoir of infecting individuals. (F) Parasite persistence is controlled by choice of host cells to be lysed and the number of parasites released during egress
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