Abstract
Hookworm parasites possess effective defence mechanisms against host innate and adaptive immune responses such as complement activation, eosinophilia and the respiratory burst in granulocytes. However there does appear to be a strong relationship between helminthic infection and the allergic phenotype in infected individuals. One candidate parasite antigen implicated in each of the above phenomena is calreticulin. It was originally identified by screening parasite cDNA expression libraries with IgE antibody, and once cloned to homogeneity was shown to modulate complement activation and bind to the signalling domains of integrins involved in haemostasis and inflammation. Hence the term the hookworm calreticulin conundrum. In hookworms, calreticulin is acting as a potential pro-inflammatory allergen, yet has the ability to moderate inflammation. However, to fulfil these functions, calreticulin should be secreted by the parasite, in a manner already described for fleas and ticks.
The work described in the present chapter summarizes work published in this field to date, addresses the issue of calreticulin secretion, describes experiments with human basophils to examine the true allergenicity of calreticulin, and discusses the likelihood that the response in humans is driven by an autoimmune component.
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Pritchard, D.I. et al. (2003). The Hookworm Calreticulin Conundrum. In: Eggleton, P., Michalak, M. (eds) Calreticulin. Molecular Biology Intelligence Unit. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9258-1_21
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9258-1_21
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
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