ISSN 2736-1756
Advanced Journal of Microbiology Research Vol. 2012
Available online at http://internationalscholarsjournals.org/journal/ajmr
© 2012 International Scholars Journals
Review
Antigenic variation in pathogenic micro-organisms: similarities and differences
Dietmar Steverding
BioMedical Research Centre, School of Medicine, Health Policy and Practice, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK. E-mail: [email protected].
Accepted 13 April, 2012
Abstract
Antigenic variation is a process by which pathogenic micro-organisms escape the immune response of their mammalian hosts. By convergent evolution, protozoal, fungal and bacterial pathogens have developed similar genetic mechanisms for true antigenic variation. In this review article, the biology, the surface antigens and their encoding genes, and the molecular mechanisms of antigenic variation of the protozoa Trypanosoma brucei, Plasmodium falciparum, Babesia bovis, Giardia lamblia, the fungus Pneumocystis carinii, and the bacteria Borrelia hermsii, Anaplasma marginale, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Mycoplasma bovis and Campylobacter fetus are compared.
Key words: Antigenic variation, pathogens, micro-organisms, molecular mechanisms, immune evasion.