Mikolajczak Sebastian A, Kappe Stefan H
Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
Mol Microbiol. 2006 Dec;62(6):1499-506. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2006.05470.x.
All mammalian malaria parasite species have an initial tissue stage in liver cells. The liver stage produces new parasite forms that can enter and live inside red blood cells. Accordingly, the first place of residence provides parasites with a radically different cellular and molecular environment from their subsequent red blood cell home. Liver stages have remained refractory to reveal their secrets, yet the last few years have seen several advances in elucidating their biology. This review looks at the more recent findings concerning the liver stage-host hepatocyte association, some of which may become powerful weapons in the prevention of malaria infection. We also outline areas of liver stage research and technological development that provide promising foci to accelerate a better understanding of this most elusive of the parasites many life cycle stages.
所有哺乳动物疟原虫物种在肝细胞中都有一个初始的组织阶段。肝期会产生新的寄生虫形式，这些形式可以进入并在红细胞内生存。因此，寄生虫的第一个居住场所为它们提供了与随后在红细胞中的生存环境截然不同的细胞和分子环境。肝期一直难以揭示其奥秘，但在过去几年中，在阐明其生物学特性方面取得了一些进展。这篇综述着眼于关于肝期与宿主肝细胞关联的最新发现，其中一些发现可能会成为预防疟疾感染的有力武器。我们还概述了肝期研究和技术发展的领域，这些领域为加速更好地理解这种寄生虫众多生命周期阶段中最难以捉摸的阶段提供了有前景的重点研究方向。
