0000000000828560
AUTHOR
Salah E. Farouk
Gamma delta T cells inhibit in vitro growth of the asexual blood stages of Plasmodium falciparum by a granule exocytosis-dependent cytotoxic pathway that requires granulysin.
Several reports have stated the ability of gamma delta T cells to inhibit the growth of the asexual blood stages of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro. However, little information is available about the mechanisms involved. In this study, in vitro systems were used to study the role of the granule exocytosis-dependent cytotoxic pathway in the growth inhibition/killing of P. falciparum by human gamma delta T cells. Our results show that the inhibition requires cell-to-cell contact and that gamma delta T cells kill the asexual blood stages of P. falciparum through a granule exocytosis-dependent cytotoxic pathway after recognition of certain ligands or molecules expressed on the surface of infecte…
Biology of gama delta T Cells in Tuberculosis and Malaria
Tuberculosis and malaria remain the leading causes of mortality among human infectious diseases in the world. It is estimated that 3 to 5 million people die from tuberculosis and malaria each year. Although it is traditionally believed that CD4 and CD8 alphabeta T lymphocytes are mandatory for protective immune responses against Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Plasmodium falciparum (the ethiologic agents of tuberculosis and the most severe form of malaria, respectively), there is still incomplete understanding of the mechanisms of immune protection and of the causes of its failure in the affected patients. Several studies in humans and animal models have suggested that Vgamma9/Vdelta2 T cell…