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Motile invaded neutrophils in the small intestine of Toxoplasma gondii -infected mice reveal a potential mechanism for parasite spread

2013; National Academy of Sciences; Volume: 110; Issue: 21 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1073/pnas.1220272110

1091-6490

Janine L. Coombes, Brittany A. Charsar, Seong-Ji Han, Joanna Halkias, Shiao Wei Chan, Anita A. Koshy, Boris Striepen, Ellen A. Robey,

Herpesvirus Infections and Treatments

Significance Toxoplasma gondii infection occurs following consumption of infected meat or contaminated water and produce. As a result, the parasite first enters the body in the intestine, but we understand surprisingly little about how it behaves there. In this study, we show that T. gondii can invade neutrophils in the intestine directly, hitching a ride in these cells as they migrate out of the intestinal tissue into the lumen. Our findings implicate neutrophils and other immune cells in a surprising luminal pathway for the spread of infection and suggest new targets for therapeutic intervention in oral infection.