Abstract
The bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis and the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii are the causative agents of chlamydiosis and toxoplasmosis in humans, respectively. Both microorganisms are obligate intracellular pathogens and notorious for extensively modifying the cytoskeletal architecture and the endomembrane system of their host cells to establish productive infections. This review highlights the similar tactics developed by these two pathogens to manipulate their host cell despite their genetic unrelatedness. Using an in vitro cell culture model whereby single fibroblasts are infected by C. trachomatis and T. gondii simultaneously, thus setting up an intracellular competition, we demonstrate that the solutions to the problem of intracellular survival deployed by the parasite and the bacterium may represent an example of convergent evolution, driven by the necessity to acquire nutrients in a hostile environment.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 72-86 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | Pathogens and Disease |
Volume | 69 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 2013 |
Keywords
- Bacteria
- Convergent evolution
- Host organelle interaction
- Intracellular parasitism
- Nutrient scavenging
- Protozoa
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- General Immunology and Microbiology
- Microbiology (medical)
- Infectious Diseases