Abstract
Studies on the extent and nature of genetic polymorphism in medically important protozoan parasites are important in order to understand epidemiological and biological aspects of parasitic infections. Genetic variations among Toxoplasma gondii isolates first were suggested by differences in pathogenicity in Swiss mice. but also by the large range of clinical manifestations in humans, not entirely explained by the immune status of the host. Besides, due to the worldwide distribution, the broad host range of this species, and its capacity of sexual reproduction, a large genetic polymorphism was expected. Isoenzymatic studies (Dardé et al. 1988) first confirmed the existence of this genetic polymorphism, with three main zymodemes originally described. Correlations between genetic polymorphism and virulence in mice were observed. Further isoenzymatic analysis and the more recent application of molecular biology techniques allowed a better understanding of the significance of genetic polymorphism in Toxoplasma regarding aspects of epidemiology, such as population structure, geographical and zoological repartition, and regarding biological characteristics, such as pathogenicity to mice or oocyst production. The role of T. gondii genotype in the clinical presentation of human disease will be the next subject of extensive research.
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© 1996 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Dardé, M.L. (1996). Biodiversity in Toxoplasma gondii . In: Gross, U. (eds) Toxoplasma gondii. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology, vol 219. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-51014-4_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-51014-4_3
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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