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Varikuti et al. Vessel Plus 2020;4:28 Vessel Plus
DOI: 10.20517/2574-1209.2020.27

Review Open Access

The role of vascular endothelium and exosomes in
human protozoan parasitic diseases

Sanjay Varikuti 1,2,* , Bijay Kumar Jha , Erin A. Holcomb , Jodi C. McDaniel , Manjula Karpurapu , Nidhi
4
3,*
1,*
5
Srivastava , Bradford S. McGwire , Abhay R. Satoskar , Narasimham L. Parinandi 5
3
1
2
1 Department of Pathology, The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH 43201, USA.
2 Department of Bioscience & Biotechnology, Banasthali University, Banasthali 304022, India.
3 Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH
43201, USA.
4 College of Nursing, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43201, USA.
5 Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University Medical
Center, Columbus, OH 43201, USA.
*Contributed equally to the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Mr. Sanjay Varikuti, Department of Pathology, The Ohio State University Medical Center, 1645-Neil Avenue,
Columbus, OH 43210, USA. E-mail: sanjay.varikuti@osumc.edu
How to cite this article: Varikuti S, Jha BK, Holcomb EA, McDaniel JC, Karpurapu M, Srivastava N, McGwire BS, Satoskar AR,
Parinandi NL. The role of vascular endothelium and exosomes in human protozoan parasitic diseases. Vessel Plus 2020;4:28.
http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2574-1209.2020.27
Received: First Decision: Revised: Accepted: Published: x
Received: 28 Jun 2020 First Decision: 31 Jul 2020 Revised: 21 Aug 2020 Accepted: 1 Sep 2020 Published: 27 Sep 2020
Science Editor: Copy Editor: Production Editor: Jing Yu
Academic Editor: Narasimham L. Parinandi Copy Editor: Cai-Hong Wang Production Editor: Jing Yu

Abstract
The vascular endothelium is a vital component in maintaining the structure and function of blood vessels. The
endothelial cells (ECs) mediate vital regulatory functions such as the proliferation of cells, permeability of various
tissue membranes, and exchange of gases, thrombolysis, blood flow, and homeostasis. The vascular endothelium
also regulates inflammation and immune cell trafficking, and ECs serve as a replicative niche for many bacterial,
viral, and protozoan infectious diseases. Endothelial dysfunction can lead to vasodilation and pro-inflammation,
which are the hallmarks of many severe diseases. Exosomes are nanoscale membrane-bound vesicles that emerge
from cells and serve as important extracellular components, which facilitate communication between cells and
maintain homeostasis during normal and pathophysiological states. Exosomes are also involved in gene transfer,
inflammation and antigen presentation, and mediation of the immune response during pathogenic states. Protozoa
are a diverse group of unicellular organisms that cause many infectious diseases in humans. In this regard, it is
becoming increasingly evident that many protozoan parasites (such as Plasmodium, Trypanosoma, Leishmania,
and Toxoplasma) utilize exosomes for the transfer of their virulence factors and effector molecules into the host
cells, which manipulate the host gene expression, immune responses, and other biological activities to establish
and modulate infection. In this review, we discuss the role of the vascular endothelium and exosomes in and

© The Author(s) 2020. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
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