Publications

cd8 t-cell responses against the immunodominant theileria parva peptide tp249-59 are composed of two distinct populations specific for overlapping 11-mer and 10-mer epitopes.	immunity against theileria parva is associated with cd8 t-cell responses that exhibit immunodominance, focusing the response against limited numbers of epitopes. as candidates for inclusion in vaccines, characterization of responses against immunodominant epitopes is a key component in novel vaccine development. we have previously demonstrated that the tp249-59 and tp1214-224 epitopes dominate cd8 t-cell responses in bola-a10 and bola-18 mhc i homozygous animals, respectively. in this study, pep ...	2016	27317384
analyses of mitochondrial genes reveal two sympatric but genetically divergent lineages of rhipicephalus appendiculatus in kenya.	the ixodid tick rhipicephalus appendiculatus transmits the apicomplexan protozoan parasite theileria parva, which causes east coast fever (ecf), the most economically important cattle disease in eastern and southern africa. recent analysis of micro- and minisatellite markers showed an absence of geographical and host-associated genetic sub-structuring amongst field populations of r. appendiculatus in kenya. to assess further the phylogenetic relationships between field and laboratory r. appendic ...	2016	27334334
induction of humoral immune response to multiple recombinant rhipicephalus appendiculatus antigens and their effect on tick feeding success and pathogen transmission.	rhipicephalus appendiculatus is the primary vector of theileria parva, the etiological agent of east coast fever (ecf), a devastating disease of cattle in sub-saharan africa. we hypothesized that a vaccine targeting tick proteins that are involved in attachment and feeding might affect feeding success and possibly reduce tick-borne transmission of t. parva. here we report the evaluation of a multivalent vaccine cocktail of tick antigens for their ability to reduce r. appendiculatus feeding succe ...	2016	27589998
a pcr-based survey of animal african trypanosomosis and selected piroplasm parasites of cattle and goats in zambia.	we screened cattle and goats from the districts of chama, monze and mumbwa in zambia for animal african trypanosomes, babesia bigemina and theileria parva using pcrs; 38.1% of the samples tested positive for at least one of the parasite species. the most common parasite was trypanosoma vivax (19.8%). its incidence was significantly higher in goats than in cattle, (p<0.05). b. bigemina was found in samples from all the three areas, making it the most widespread of the parasites in zambia. among t ...	2017	27616437
approaches to vaccination against theileria parva and theileria annulata.	despite having different cell tropism, the pathogenesis and immunobiology of the diseases caused by theileria parva and theileria annulata are remarkably similar. live vaccines have been available for both parasites for over 40 years, but although they provide strong protection, practical disadvantages have limited their widespread application. efforts to develop alternative vaccines using defined parasite antigens have focused on the sporozoite and intracellular schizont stages of the parasites ...	2016	27647496
detection of theileria parva in tissues of cattle undergoing severe east coast fever disease show significant parasite dna accumulation in the spleen.	infiltration and proliferation of theileria parva infected lymphocytes in bovine host lymphoid organs is one of the hallmarks of t. parva infection. the relative abundance of parasites within infected host tissues, both lymphoid and non-lymphoid is however unknown. using quantitative pcr, we have shown that significantly higher concentrations of t. parva dna are detected in the spleens of cattle undergoing severe disease compared to other organs.	2016	27890079
genes encoding two theileria parva antigens recognized by cd8+ t-cells exhibit sequence diversity in south sudanese cattle populations but the majority of alleles are similar to the muguga component of the live vaccine cocktail.	east coast fever (ecf), caused by theileria parva infection, is a frequently fatal disease of cattle in eastern, central and southern africa, and an emerging disease in south sudan. immunization using the infection and treatment method (itm) is increasingly being used for control in countries affected by ecf, but not yet in south sudan. it has been reported that cd8+ t-cell lymphocytes specific for parasitized cells play a central role in the immunity induced by itm and a number of t. parva anti ...	2017	28231338
a review on prevalence, control measure, and tolerance of tanzania shorthorn zebu cattle to east coast fever in tanzania.	in tanzania, control of east coast fever (ecf) has predominantly relied on tick control using acaricides and chemotherapy, little on ecf vaccination, and very little on dissemination regarding animal immunization. in this paper, the prevalence, control measure, and tolerance of tanzania shorthorn zebu (tshz) cattle to ecf are reviewed. in addition, the opportunities available for reducing the use of acaricides for the benefit of the farmers in terms of reduction of costs of purchasing acaricides ...	2017	28332070
characterization of tabanid flies (diptera: tabanidae) in south africa and zambia and detection of protozoan parasites they are harbouring.	tabanids are haematophagous flies feeding on livestock and wildlife. in the absence of information on the relationship of tabanid flies and protozoan parasites in south africa and zambia, the current study was aimed at characterizing tabanid flies collected in these two countries as well as detecting protozoan parasites they are harbouring. a total of 527 tabanid flies were collected whereby 70·2% were from south africa and 29·8% were from zambia. morphological analysis revealed a total of five ...	2017	28502276
the control of east coast fever of cattle by live parasite vaccination: a science-to-impact narrative.	there is an increasing interest in determining the impact of vaccine technologies developed using public funding targeted at international development, and understanding the factors and ingredients which contribute to the success and impacts of such vaccines. this paper chronicles the development of a live vaccine against east coast fever, a tick-borne disease of cattle caused by theileria parva. the paper describes the technological innovation, commonly known as infection-and-treatment, which w ...	2016	28616483
babesia bovis bov57, a theileria parva p67 homolog, is an invasion-related, neutralization-sensitive antigen.	babesia bovis bov57, which is a homolog of the theileria parva vaccine candidate antigen p67, is expressed in both the tick and blood stages of the life cycle of this parasite. however, the vaccine potential of bov57 remained to be investigated. in the present study, we generated recombinant bov57 (rbov57) and prepared polyclonal antibodies against rbov57 in mice and rabbits. indirect immunofluorescence assays conducted with the mouse anti-rbov57 antibody demonstrated that bov57 localized at the ...	2017	28668608
prevalence and risk factors associated with theileria parva infection in cattle in three regions of tanzania.	ticks and tickborne diseases (tbds) are serious constraints to cattle production in tanzania and other tropical and subtropical countries. among the tbds, east coast fever (ecf) is the most important as it causes significant economic losses to the cattle industry in tanzania. however, control of ecf in tanzania has continued to be a challenge due to inadequate epidemiological information. the main objective of this study was to determine the epidemiological situation of theileria parva infection ...	2017	28752214
sialotranscriptomics of rhipicephalus zambeziensis reveals intricate expression profiles of secretory proteins and suggests tight temporal transcriptional regulation during blood-feeding.	ticks secrete a diverse mixture of secretory proteins into the host to evade its immune response and facilitate blood-feeding, making secretory proteins attractive targets for the production of recombinant anti-tick vaccines. the largely neglected tick species, rhipicephalus zambeziensis, is an efficient vector of theileria parva in southern africa but its available sequence information is limited. next generation sequencing has advanced sequence availability for ticks in recent years and has as ...	2017	28797301
assessment and optimization of theileria parva sporozoite full-length p67 antigen expression in mammalian cells.	delivery of various forms of recombinant theileria parva sporozoite antigen (p67) has been shown to elicit antibody responses in cattle capable of providing protection against east coast fever, the clinical disease caused by t. parva. previous formulations of full-length and shorter recombinant versions of p67 derived from bacteria, insect, and mammalian cell systems are expressed in non-native and highly unstable forms. the stable expression of full-length recombinant p67 in mammalian cells has ...	2017	28800590