Erazo Flores Billy J, Knoll Laura J
Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA.
Vaccines (Basel). 2025 Jul 31;13(8):819. doi: 10.3390/vaccines13080819.
is an intracellular protozoan found worldwide that is capable of infecting nearly all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Its parasitic success lies in its capacity to create chronic infections while avoiding immune detection, altering host immune responses, and disrupting programmed cell death pathways. This review examines the complex relationship between and host immunity, focusing on how the parasite influences innate and adaptive immune responses to survive in immune-privileged tissues. We present recent findings on the immune modulation specific to various parasite strains, the immunopathology caused by imbalanced inflammation, and how the parasite undermines host cell death mechanisms such as apoptosis, necroptosis, and pyroptosis. These immune evasion tactics enable prolonged intracellular survival and pose significant challenges for treatment and vaccine development. We also review advancements in therapeutic strategies, including host-directed approaches, nanoparticle drug delivery, and CRISPR-based technologies, along with progress in vaccine development from subunit and DNA vaccines to live-attenuated candidates. This review emphasizes the importance of as a model for chronic infections and points out potential avenues for developing innovative therapies and vaccines aimed at toxoplasmosis and similar intracellular pathogens.
是一种在全球范围内发现的细胞内原生动物，能够感染几乎所有温血动物，包括人类。其寄生成功在于它能够产生慢性感染，同时避免免疫检测、改变宿主免疫反应以及破坏程序性细胞死亡途径。本综述探讨了[寄生虫名称未给出]与宿主免疫之间的复杂关系，重点关注寄生虫如何影响先天性和适应性免疫反应以在免疫特权组织中存活。我们介绍了关于各种寄生虫菌株特异性免疫调节、炎症失衡引起的免疫病理学以及寄生虫如何破坏宿主细胞死亡机制（如凋亡、坏死性凋亡和焦亡）的最新发现。这些免疫逃避策略使寄生虫能够在细胞内长期存活，并对治疗和疫苗开发构成重大挑战。我们还回顾了治疗策略的进展，包括宿主导向方法、纳米颗粒药物递送和基于CRISPR的技术，以及从亚单位疫苗和DNA疫苗到减毒活疫苗候选物在疫苗开发方面的进展。本综述强调了[寄生虫名称未给出]作为慢性感染模型的重要性，并指出了开发针对弓形虫病和类似细胞内病原体的创新疗法和疫苗的潜在途径。
