Cell-mediated immune responses of cattle to Theileria parva

Theileria parva is a protozoan parasite that infects lymphocytes of cattle and African buffalo. As is the case with certain viruses, the parasite causes antigenic changes on the cell surface against which the host mounts cytotoxic T-cell. Precise definition of the cells participating in these response and their specificity has been facilitated by the recent identification of markers for bovine T-cell subpopulations and functional analyses of bovine lymphocytes at the clonal level. In this paper Ivan Morrison and his colleagues discuss current information on the parasite specificity and MHC restriction of anti-Theileria cytotoxic T cell, in relation to their role in protective immunity.