Lotter H, Tannich E
Bernhard Nocht-Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany.
Behring Inst Mitt. 1997 Mar(99):112-6.
Invasive amoebiasis, a spectrum of diseases caused by the enteric protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica, constitutes a major health problem mainly in tropical and subtropical countries with poor sanitary conditions. The different forms of the disease are characterized by massive tissue lesions. Amoeba-induced tissue destruction requires an intimate contact between E. histolytica trophozoites and host cells. This contact is predominantly mediated by a galactose-inhibitable lectin located on the surface of the amoebae. Therefore, the lectin is considered a prime candidate for the development of a vaccine to prevent amoebiasis. This communication reports on recent developments in characterizing the structure and function of the E. histolytica surface lectin and its use as a subunit vaccine.
侵袭性阿米巴病是由肠道原生动物寄生虫溶组织内阿米巴引起的一系列疾病，主要在卫生条件差的热带和亚热带国家构成重大健康问题。该疾病的不同形式以大量组织损伤为特征。阿米巴诱导的组织破坏需要溶组织内阿米巴滋养体与宿主细胞密切接触。这种接触主要由位于阿米巴表面的一种半乳糖抑制性凝集素介导。因此，该凝集素被认为是开发预防阿米巴病疫苗的主要候选物。本通讯报道了溶组织内阿米巴表面凝集素结构和功能表征及其作为亚单位疫苗应用的最新进展。
