Extracellular Vesicles and Their Impact on the Biology of Protozoan Parasites

Abstract

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are lipid-membrane-bound structures produced naturally by all cells and have a variety of functions. EVs act as vehicles for transporting important molecular signals from one cell to another. Several parasites have been shown to secrete EVs, and their biological functions have been extensively studied. EVs have been shown to facilitate communication with the host cells (such as modulation of the host’s immune system or promoting attachment and invasion into the host cells) or for communication between parasitic cells (e.g., transferring drug-resistance genes or factors modulating stage conversion). It is clear that EVs play an important role in host–parasite interactions. In this review, we summarized the latest research on the EVs secreted by protozoan parasites and their role in host–parasite and parasite–parasite communications.