Toxoplasma gondii
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyMimicry Embedding Facilitates Advanced Neural Network Training for Image-Based Pathogen DetectionIn biology, the use of deep neural networks (DNNs) for analysis of pathogen infection is hampered by a lack of large verified data sets needed for rapid network evolution. Artificial neural networks detect handwritten digits with high precision thanks to large data sets, such as MNIST, that allow nearly unlimited training. Here, we developed a novel strategy we call mimicry embedding, which allows artificial intelligence (AI)-based...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyTranscriptional Profiling Suggests T Cells Cluster around Neurons Injected with Toxoplasma gondii ProteinsLike other persistent intracellular pathogens, Toxoplasma gondii, a protozoan parasite, has evolved to evade the immune system and establish a chronic infection in specific cells and organs, including neurons in the CNS. Understanding T. gondii’s persistence in neurons holds the potential to identify novel, curative drug targets. The work presented here...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologySuccinylated Wheat Germ Agglutinin Colocalizes with the Toxoplasma gondii Cyst Wall Glycoprotein CST1Chronic Toxoplasma gondii infection is maintained in the central nervous system by thick-walled cysts. If host immunity wanes, cysts recrudesce and cause severe and often lethal toxoplasmic encephalitis. Currently, there are no therapies to eliminate cysts, and little biological information is available regarding cyst structure(s). Here, we investigated cyst wall...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyMAG2, a Toxoplasma gondii Bradyzoite Stage-Specific Cyst Matrix ProteinThis report expands on the list of characterized Toxoplasma gondii cyst matrix proteins. Using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP), we have shown that matrix proteins within the cyst matrix are not mainly in a mobile state, providing further evidence of how proteins behave within the cyst matrix. Understanding the proteins expressed during the bradyzoite...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyToxoplasma Cathepsin Protease B and Aspartyl Protease 1 Are Dispensable for Endolysosomal Protein DigestionRoughly one-third of the human population is chronically infected with the intracellular single-celled parasite Toxoplasma gondii, but little is known about how this organism persists inside people. Previous research suggested that a parasite proteolytic enzyme, termed cathepsin protease L, is important for Toxoplasma persistence; however, it remained...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyToxoplasma gondii Dysregulates Barrier Function and Mechanotransduction Signaling in Human Endothelial CellsToxoplasma gondii is a foodborne parasite that infects virtually all warm-blooded animals and can cause severe disease in individuals with compromised or weakened immune systems. During dissemination in its infected hosts, T. gondii breaches endothelial barriers to enter tissues and establish the...
Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyToxoplasma gondii Parasitophorous Vacuole Membrane-Associated Dense Granule Proteins Regulate Maturation of the Cyst WallToxoplasma gondii establishes chronic infection in humans by forming thick-walled cysts that persist in the brain. Once host immunity wanes, cysts reactivate to cause severe, and often lethal, toxoplasmic encephalitis. There is no available therapy to eliminate cysts or to prevent their reactivation. Furthermore, how the cyst membrane and cyst wall structures develop...
Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyToxoplasma gondii Intravacuolar-Network-Associated Dense Granule Proteins Regulate Maturation of the Cyst Matrix and Cyst WallToxoplasma gondii establishes chronic infection in humans by forming thick-walled cysts that persist in the brain. If host immunity wanes, cysts reactivate to cause severe, and often lethal, toxoplasmic encephalitis. There is no available therapy to eliminate cysts or to prevent their reactivation. Moreover, how the vital and characteristic cyst matrix and cyst wall...
Research Article | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyBiological Diagnosis of Ocular Toxoplasmosis: a Nine-Year Retrospective Observational StudyOcular toxoplasmosis (OT), a parasitic infection of the eye, is considered to be the most important infectious cause of posterior uveitis worldwide. Its prevalence is particularly high in South America, where aggressive Toxoplasma gondii strains are responsible for more-severe presentations. The particular pathophysiology of this infection leads, from recurrence to...
Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologyNeighbors Working Together: a Toxoplasma Rhoptry Protein That Facilitates Dense Granule Protein Translocation into the Host CellThe opportunistic pathogen Toxoplasma gondii is highly adept at manipulating host cell functions. While inside a host cell, Toxoplasma divides within a parasitophorous vacuole from which it secretes numerous effector proteins from its dense granules. Many of these so-called GRA proteins are translocated from the parsitophorous vacuole into the host cell where...