Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 19, Issue 10, 2012

Although the parasitology belongs to one of the longest established disciplines, the recent methodical advances led to the substantial broadening of the possibilities for the detection and treatment of parasitic diseases. However, the exact mechanisms involved in the parasite establishment and survival are frequently unclear and only recently uncovered. At the cellular level, the emerging mechanisms, discussed in this journal iss Read More

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV; Family Paramyxoviridae, Genus Pneumovirus) is a major respiratory pathogen of infants and children and an emerging pathogen of the elderly. Current management of RSV disease includes monoclonal antibody prophylaxis for infants identified as high risk and supportive care for those with active infection; there is no vaccine, although several are under study. In this manuscript, we review Read More

Mast cells are best known as central effector cells in IgE-mediated type I allergic diseases including asthma and hay fever. An increasing amount of evidence, however, has demonstrated that mast cells are sentinel cells playing a critical role in host defense against invading microbes. Mast cells are located immediately beneath the epithelial surfaces exposed to the outer environment, such as genitourinary and gastrointestinal tr Read More

Leishmaniasis remains a public health problem worldwide, affecting approximately 12 million people in 88 countries; 50 000 die of it each year. The disease is caused by Leishmania, obligate intracellular vector-borne parasites. In spite of its huge health impact on the populations in vast areas, leishmaniasis is one of the most neglected diseases. No safe and effective vaccine currently exists against any form of human leishmani Read More

Malaria imposes a serious threat to human and becomes more prevalent due to the emergence of drug resistant parasite. Understanding of the underlying mechanism of drug resistance and identification of novel drug targets are key effective processes for the management of malaria. Malaria parasite is highly susceptible to oxidative stress but lives in a pro-oxidant rich environment containing oxygen and iron, which pr Read More

Babesiosis is a disease with a world-wide distribution affecting many species of mammals principally cattle and man. The major impact occurs in the cattle industry where bovine babesiosis has had a huge economic effect due to loss of meat and beef production of infected animals and death. Nowadays to those costs there must be added the high cost of tick control, disease detection, prevention and treatment. In almost a ce Read More

The resident prokaryotic microbiota of the mammalian intestine influences diverse homeostatic functions, including regulation of cellular growth, maintenance of barrier function, and modulation of immune responses. However, it is unknown how commensal prokaryotic organisms mechanistically influence eukaryotic signaling networks. Recent data has demonstrated that gut epithelia contacted by enteric commen Read More

Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) are increasingly recognized as important effectors of host-pathogen interactions. Since Guan and Dixon reported in 1990 that phosphatase YopH serves as an essential virulence determinant of Yersinia, the field shifted significantly forward, and dozens of PTPs were identified in various microorganisms and even in viruses. The discovery of extensive tyrosine signaling networks in non-me Read More

Helminths are parasitic organisms that can be broadly described as “worms” due to their elongated body plan, but which otherwise differ in shape, development, migratory routes and the predilection site of the adults and larvae. They are divided into three major groups: trematodes (flukes), which are leaf-shaped, hermaphroditic (except for blood flukes) flatworms with oral and ventral suckers; cestodes (tapeworms), which a Read More