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PMID: 18040886 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Review

L-arginine metabolism and its impact on host immunity against Leishmania infection.

Immunologic research ·Vol. 41 ·No. 1 ·2008-00-00 ·Pages 15-25

Wanasen N, Soong L

Abstract

Leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease found in many countries worldwide. The causative agent of the disease, Leishmania spp., lives as an obligate intracellular parasite within mammalian hosts. Since tissue macrophages are major target cells for parasite replication, the outcome of infection depends largely on the activation status of these cells. L-arginine is a crucial amino acid required for both nitric oxide (NO)-mediated parasite killing and polyamine-mediated parasite replication. This review highlights the significance of L-arginine as a factor determining the outcomes of Leishmania infection in vitro and its influences on host immune responses in vivo. Various therapeutic approaches targeting L-arginine metabolic pathways during infections with Leishmania are also discussed.

MeSH Terms
Animals Arginase/immunology,metabolism Arginine/immunology,metabolism Cationic Amino Acid Transporter 2/immunology,metabolism Humans Immunity, Innate Leishmania Leishmaniasis/immunology,metabolism,parasitology,therapy Macrophage Activation Macrophages/immunology,metabolism,parasitology Mice Nitric Oxide/immunology,metabolism Polyamines/immunology,metabolism Th1 Cells/immunology,metabolism Th2 Cells/immunology,metabolism
Chemicals
Cationic Amino Acid Transporter 2 Polyamines Nitric Oxide Arginine Arginase
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Wanasen Nanchaya
Department of Microbiology, Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infections, Sealy Center for Vaccine Development, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX 77555-1070, USA.
Soong Lynn
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Article Info
Journal
Immunologic research
Abbr.
Immunol Res
ISSN
0257-277X
DOI
10.1007/s12026-007-8012-y
Published
2008-00-00
Pages
15-25
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
8611087
PMCID
PMC2639710
Subset
IM
Grants
NIAID NIH HHS · R01 AI043003 · United States
NIAID NIH HHS · R01 AI043003-08 · United States
NIAID NIH HHS · R01 AI043003-07 · United States
NIAID NIH HHS · R01 AI043003-09 · United States
NIAID NIH HHS · R01 AI043003-06A2 · United States
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1007/s12026-007-8012-y PMC Full Text View journal details
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