Main description:

The immune systems of human and non-human primates have diverged over time, such that some species differ considerably in their susceptibility, symptoms, and survival of particular infectious diseases. Variation in primate immunity is such that major human pathogens - such as immunodeficiency viruses, herpesviruses and malaria-inducing species of Plasmodium - elicit striking differences in immune response between closely related species and within primate populations. These differences in immunity are the outcome of complex evolutionary processes that include interactions between the host, its pathogens and symbiont/commensal organisms. The success of some pathogens in establishing persistent infections in humans and other primates has been determined not just by the molecular evolution of the pathogen and its interactions with the host, but also by the evolution of primate behavior and ecology, microflora, immune factors and the evolution of other biological systems.

To explore how interactions between primates and their pathogens have shaped their mutual molecular evolution, Primates, Pathogens and Evolution brings together research that explores comparative primate immune function, the emergence of major and neglected primate diseases, primate-microorganism molecular interactions, and related topics. This book will be of interest to anyone curious as to why infectious diseases manifest differently in humans and their closest relatives. It will be of particular interest to scholars specializing in human and non-human primate evolution, epidemiology and immunology, and disease ecology. Primates, Pathogens and Evolution offers an overview and discussion of current findings on differences in the molecular mechanics of primate immune response, as well as on pathogen-mediated primate evolution and human and non-human primate health.

Contents:

Section I Immunity and Primate Evolution

Vertebrate Immune system evolution and comparative primate immunity
Jessica F. Brinkworth and Mitchell Thorn

Genetic variation in the immune system of Old World monkeys: functional and selective effects
Dagan A. Loisel and Jenny Tung

Toll-like receptor function and evolution in primates
Jessica F. Brinkworth and Kirstin N. Sterner

Impact of natural selection due to malarial disease on human genetic variation
Felicia Gomez, Wen-Ya Ko, Avery Davis, and Sarah A. Tishkoff

Parasitic lice help to fill in the gaps of early hominid history
Julie M. Allen, Cedric O. Worman, Jessica E. Light, and David L. Reed

Section II Emergence and Divergent Disease Manifestation

Treponema pallidum infection in Primates: Clinical Manifestations, Epidemiology, and Evolution of a Stealthy Pathogen
Kristin Harper and Sascha Knauf

Molecular mimicry by -2 herpesviruses to modulate host cell signaling pathways
Lai-Yee Wong, Zsolt toth, Kevin F. Brulois, Kyung-Soo Inn, Sun-Hwa Lee, Hye-Ra Lee, and Jae U. Jung

Neotropical primates and their susceptibility to Toxoplasma gondii: new insights for an old problem
Jose Luiz Catao-Dias, Sabrina Epiphanio and Maria Cecilia Martins Kierulff

The Evolution of SIV in primates and the emergence of the pathogen of AIDS
Edward JD Greenwood, Fabian Schmidt, and Jonathan L. Heeney

Section III Primates, Pathogens and Health

Microbial exposures and other early childhood influences on the subsequent function of the immune system
Graham A.W. Rook.

Make new friends and keep the old? Parasite coinfection and comorbidity in Homo sapiens
Melanie Martin, Aaron D. Blackwell, Michael Gurven and Hillard Kaplan

Primates, pathogens and evolution: A context for understanding emerging disease
Kristin N. Harper, Molly K. Zuckerman, Bethany L. Turner, George Armelagos