Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil; Rio de Janeiro Innovation Network in Nanosystems for Health-NanoSAÚDE/Fundação Carlos Chagas Filho de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (FAPERJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil; National Institute of Science and Technology for Regenerative Medicine, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Curr Top Membr. 2024;94:107-132. doi: 10.1016/bs.ctm.2024.06.006. Epub 2024 Aug 31.
Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites from the genus Plasmodium. Five species can cause malaria in humans, with Plasmodium vivax being the most common in many countries and Plasmodium falciparum having the highest lethality, which can lead to cerebral malaria. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are in focus in malaria research to better understand pathogenesis, diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis. Malaria-causing parasites use EVs to transfer their molecules to host cells, a mechanism that significantly contributes to parasite survival and successful infection. EVs have thus emerged as an essential component of the immunopathological cascade of malaria, playing a pivotal role in disease progression and severity. This chapter discusses the epidemiology and pathogenesis of malaria and the role of EVs as new diagnostic and therapeutic tools, emphasizing their potential clinical significance.
疟疾是一种由疟原虫属寄生虫引起的危及生命的疾病。五种疟原虫可引起人类疟疾，其中间日疟原虫在许多国家最为常见，恶性疟原虫的致死率最高，可导致脑型疟疾。外泌体（EVs）是疟疾研究的重点，以更好地了解发病机制、诊断、治疗和预后。引起疟疾的寄生虫利用 EVs 将其分子转移到宿主细胞，这种机制极大地促进了寄生虫的生存和成功感染。因此，EVs 已成为疟疾免疫病理级联反应的重要组成部分，在疾病进展和严重程度中发挥关键作用。本章讨论了疟疾的流行病学和发病机制，以及 EVs 作为新的诊断和治疗工具的作用，强调了它们的潜在临床意义。
