TY - JOUR
T1 - Imaging of the spleen in malaria
AU - Ferrer, Mireia
AU - Martin-Jaular, Lorena
AU - De Niz, Mariana
AU - Khan, Shahid M.
AU - Janse, Chris J.
AU - Calvo, Maria
AU - Heussler, Volker
AU - Del Portillo, Hernando A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Work in the laboratory of HAP is funded by the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme (grant agreement no 242095 ) and by the Ministerio Español de Economia y Competitividad, Spain ( SAF2012-35133 ).
PY - 2014/2
Y1 - 2014/2
N2 - Splenomegaly, albeit variably, is a hallmark of malaria; yet, the role of the spleen in Plasmodium infections remains vastly unknown. The implementation of imaging to study the spleen is rapidly advancing our knowledge of this so-called "blackbox" of the abdominal cavity. Not only has ex vivo imaging revealed the complex functional compartmentalization of the organ and immune effector cells, but it has also allowed the observation of major structural remodeling during infections. In vivo imaging, on the other hand, has allowed quantitative measurements of the dynamic passage of the parasite at spatial and temporal resolution. Here, we review imaging techniques used for studying the malarious spleen, from optical microscopy to in vivo imaging, and discuss the bright perspectives of evolving technologies in our present understanding of the role of this organ in infections caused by Plasmodium.
AB - Splenomegaly, albeit variably, is a hallmark of malaria; yet, the role of the spleen in Plasmodium infections remains vastly unknown. The implementation of imaging to study the spleen is rapidly advancing our knowledge of this so-called "blackbox" of the abdominal cavity. Not only has ex vivo imaging revealed the complex functional compartmentalization of the organ and immune effector cells, but it has also allowed the observation of major structural remodeling during infections. In vivo imaging, on the other hand, has allowed quantitative measurements of the dynamic passage of the parasite at spatial and temporal resolution. Here, we review imaging techniques used for studying the malarious spleen, from optical microscopy to in vivo imaging, and discuss the bright perspectives of evolving technologies in our present understanding of the role of this organ in infections caused by Plasmodium.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.parint.2013.08.014
DO - 10.1016/j.parint.2013.08.014
M3 - Review article
C2 - 23999413
AN - SCOPUS:84888137374
SN - 1383-5769
VL - 63
SP - 195
EP - 205
JO - Parasitology International
JF - Parasitology International
IS - 1
ER -
