Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis

Cryptococcal meningitis is a fatal opportunistic infection of the brain and a leading cause of neurological damage and death in immunocompromised individuals. This neglected fungal disease of the brain is a huge burden on the health systems of developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa,...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal:	R. Dangarembizi
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Elsevier 2021
Materias:	Neuroinflammation Cryptococcus Neuroimmune responses Signalling pathways Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/17a573b34b7d49919c06a658e44e08d1
Etiquetas:	Agregar Etiqueta Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!

id	oai:doaj.org-article:17a573b34b7d49919c06a658e44e08d1
record_format	dspace
spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:17a573b34b7d49919c06a658e44e08d12021-11-16T04:11:29ZReimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis2666-354610.1016/j.bbih.2021.100388https://doaj.org/article/17a573b34b7d49919c06a658e44e08d12021-12-01T00:00:00Zhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666354621001915https://doaj.org/toc/2666-3546Cryptococcal meningitis is a fatal opportunistic infection of the brain and a leading cause of neurological damage and death in immunocompromised individuals. This neglected fungal disease of the brain is a huge burden on the health systems of developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, where up to 25% of people living with HIV/AIDS succumb to it. Cryptococcal fungal cells have a predilection for the brain and they are capable of traversing the blood brain barrier and invade the brain where they cause infection, inflammation and a disruption of normal brain function. A robust host neuroimmune response is critical for pathogen clearance and survival, and a good understanding of the mechanisms underlying its development in the host is critical for the development of effective treatments. However, past basic research studies have been focussed on the characteristics of the fungus and its effect on the peripheral immune system; with little attention paid to how it interacts with brain immune cells. This mini review briefly discusses the paucity of basic research data on the neuroimmune response to cryptococcal infection, raises pertinent questions on how the brain cells respond to the fungal infection, and thereafter discusses models, techniques and advanced technologies that could be useful for carrying out high-throughput research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis.R. DangarembiziElsevierarticleNeuroinflammationCryptococcusNeuroimmune responsesSignalling pathwaysNeurosciences. Biological psychiatry. NeuropsychiatryRC321-571ENBrain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health, Vol 18, Iss , Pp 100388- (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Neuroinflammation Cryptococcus Neuroimmune responses Signalling pathways Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571
spellingShingle	Neuroinflammation Cryptococcus Neuroimmune responses Signalling pathways Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry RC321-571 R. Dangarembizi Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
description	Cryptococcal meningitis is a fatal opportunistic infection of the brain and a leading cause of neurological damage and death in immunocompromised individuals. This neglected fungal disease of the brain is a huge burden on the health systems of developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, where up to 25% of people living with HIV/AIDS succumb to it. Cryptococcal fungal cells have a predilection for the brain and they are capable of traversing the blood brain barrier and invade the brain where they cause infection, inflammation and a disruption of normal brain function. A robust host neuroimmune response is critical for pathogen clearance and survival, and a good understanding of the mechanisms underlying its development in the host is critical for the development of effective treatments. However, past basic research studies have been focussed on the characteristics of the fungus and its effect on the peripheral immune system; with little attention paid to how it interacts with brain immune cells. This mini review briefly discusses the paucity of basic research data on the neuroimmune response to cryptococcal infection, raises pertinent questions on how the brain cells respond to the fungal infection, and thereafter discusses models, techniques and advanced technologies that could be useful for carrying out high-throughput research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis.
format	article
author	R. Dangarembizi
author_facet	R. Dangarembizi
author_sort	R. Dangarembizi
title	Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
title_short	Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
title_full	Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
title_fullStr	Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
title_full_unstemmed	Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
title_sort	reimagining the future of african brain health: perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis
publisher	Elsevier
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/17a573b34b7d49919c06a658e44e08d1
work_keys_str_mv	AT rdangarembizi reimaginingthefutureofafricanbrainhealthperspectivesforbasicresearchonthepathogenesisofcryptococcalmeningitis
_version_	1718426708982366208

Reimagining the future of African brain health: Perspectives for basic research on the pathogenesis of cryptococcal meningitis

Ejemplares similares