Antigenic variation in the persistence and transmission of the ehrlichia Anaplasma marginale

Abstract

Tick-borne transmission of ehrlichial pathogens requires rickettsemic reservoir hosts to maintain a population of infected vectors. Persistence in their respective mammalian hosts appears to be a common feature of the tick- transmitted ehrlichiae. How infection persists in immunocompetent hosts is unknown. In this review, we describe studies on Anaplasma marginale, an ehrlichial pathogen of cattle, that support antigenic variation as a primary mechanism of persistence. (C) 2000 Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.