Interplay between Host and Pathogen: Effects of Infection and Immune Responses

Dear Colleagues,

The complex network of interactions between a host and pathogen determines the outcome of infection. Following invasion by a pathogen, the host cannot always neutralize the microorganism, which may survive as a persistent infection. Such a condition is crucial both environmentally and evolutionarily because it can affect infection prevalence, transmission and virulence evolution. However, the factors causing variation in infection outcomes, and the balance between clearance and virulence are not well understood. Within the host a number of processes may play a role in pathogen persistent infection or clearance. These include different degrees of host selective pressures such as: molecular, immunological, epidemiological, host heterogeneity, spatial structure, population bottlenecks and other stochastic processes. On the other hand, the variability in virulence of microorganisms impacts on pathogenicity and clearance rates. Thus, the variance in infection outcomes is thereby determined by how microbe virulence—and its components—relate to multiple host defence facets.

We are pleased to invite you, with the presentation of this special issue, to recent advances in the decoding of mechanisms of persistent infection and the role of host immune response on clinical outcomes, as well as investigation of the interactions between invading pathogen virulence factors and the immune system of the host organism tasked with counteracting them.

This Special Issue aims to point out new insights into the host-pathogen interplay. In particular, it should provide valuable findings in the virulence and immunological mechanisms underlying such interactions, and their role in host defence. In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Adding new information on these subjects may lead to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of different diseases and aid in the design of new therapeutic and prophylactic strategies.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Grazia Pavia
Dr. Gianfranco Di Gennaro
Guest Editors

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• host immune response
• virulence determinants
• pathogen-host interaction
• immune responses
• therapeutic strategies
• vaccines