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© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Babesiosis is a disease caused by tickborne hemoprotozoan apicomplexan parasites of the genus Babesia that negatively impacts public health and food security worldwide. Development of effective and sustainable vaccines against babesiosis is currently hindered in part by the absence of definitive host correlates of protection. Despite that, studies in Babesia microti and Babesia bovis, major causative agents of human and bovine babesiosis, respectively, suggest that early activation of innate immune responses is crucial for vertebrates to survive acute infection. Trained immunity (TI) is defined as the development of memory in vertebrate innate immune cells, allowing more efficient responses to subsequent specific and non-specific challenges. Considering that Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), a widely used anti-tuberculosis attenuated vaccine, induces strong TI pro-inflammatory responses, we hypothesize that BCG TI may protect vertebrates against acute babesiosis. This premise is supported by early investigations demonstrating that BCG inoculation protects mice against experimental B. microti infection and recent observations that BCG vaccination decreases the severity of malaria in children infected with Plasmodium falciparum, a Babesia-related parasite. We also discuss the potential use of TI in conjunction with recombinant BCG vaccines expressing Babesia immunogens. In conclusion, by concentrating on human and bovine babesiosis, herein we intend to raise awareness of BCG TI as a strategy to efficiently control Babesia infection.

Details

Title
Harnessing Mycobacterium bovis BCG Trained Immunity to Control Human and Bovine Babesiosis
Author
Bastos, Reginaldo G 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Alzan, Heba F 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Rathinasamy, Vignesh A 3 ; Cooke, Brian M 3 ; Dellagostin, Odir A 4   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Barletta, Raúl G 5 ; Suarez, Carlos E 6   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7040, USA; [email protected] 
 Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-7040, USA; [email protected]; Parasitology and Animal Diseases Department, Veterinary Research Institute, National Research Center, Giza 12622, Egypt 
 Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD 4870, Australia; [email protected] (V.A.R.); [email protected] (B.M.C.) 
 Centro de Desenvolvimento Tecnológico, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Pelotas 96010-900, Rio Grande Do Sul, Brazil; [email protected] 
 School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583-0905, USA; [email protected] 
 Animal Disease Research Unit, United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Pullman, WA 99164-7040, USA 
First page
123
Publication year
2022
Publication date
2022
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
2076393X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2621375483
Copyright
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.