Hijacking of host cellular functions by the Apicomplexa

Abstract

Intracellular pathogens such as viruses and bacteria subvert all the major cellular functions of their hosts. Targeted host processes include protein synthesis, membrane trafficking, modulation of gene expression, antigen presentation, and apoptosis. In recent years, it has become evident that protozoan pathogens, including members of the phylum Apicomplexa, also hijack their host cell's functions to access nutrients and to escape cellular defenses and immune responses. These obligate intracellular parasites provide superb illustrations of the subversion of host cell processes such as the recruitment and reorganization of host cell compartments without fusion around the parasitophorous vacuole of Toxoplasma gondii; the export of Plasmodium falciparum proteins on the surface of infected erythrocytes; and the induced transformation of the lymphocytes infected by Theileria parva, which leads to clonal extension.