![Understanding Microsporidia Infections]()
Microsporidia are single-celled parasites that are emerging pathogens of importance in human and veterinary medicine. While initially recognized to cause infections in immune compromised patients they are also now known to cause infections in patients with an intact immune system. Microsporidiosis can present with a variety of symptoms, including conjunctivitis (pink eye), encephalitis (swelling of the brain), severe diarrhea, and can result in death. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded a $2.1 million, five-year grant to Louis Weiss, M.D., M.P.H., to continue his efforts to understand how microsporidia infect host cells. Microsporidia infect host cells using a unique invading structure, the polar tube, which acts like a hypodermic needle to pierce the host cell membrane, allowing the parasite to insert itself into its target cell. Dr. Weiss and colleagues have developed a way to purify the proteins that comprise this structure and, using this method, they plan to identify the complete set of proteins that make up the polar tube and how they work together in allowing microsporidia to invade host cells. Dr. Weiss is professor of pathology and of medicine at Einstein, and co-director of the Einstein Global Health Center. He also is an attending physician in infectious diseases at Montefiore/Weiler Hospital.
Posted on: Thursday, June 09, 2016