Molecular Pathogens, 2025, Vol.16, No.1, 1-9 http://microbescipublisher.com/index.php/mp 1 Research Insight Open Access Host-Pathogen Interactions in Water Buffalo: Insights from Immune Response Studies Hui Liu Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resources, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China Corresponding email: hui.liu@hitar.org Molecular Pathogens, 2025, Vol.16, No.1 doi: 10.5376/mp.2025.16.0001 Received: 04 Nov., 2024 Accepted: 20 Dec., 2024 Published: 05 Jan., 2025 Copyright © 2025 Liu, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Lui H., 2025, Mechanisms of immune evasion by african swine fever virus: an integrated review, Molecular Pathogens, 16(1): 1-9 (doi: 10.5376/mp.2025.16.0001) Abstract This study reviews the main components of the innate and adaptive immune systems in water buffalo, focusing on immune response mechanisms in common diseases such as brucellosis, foot-and-mouth disease, and trypanosomiasis. It analyzes the critical roles of Toll-like receptors (TLRs), cytokines, and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in pathogen recognition and immune activation. Case studies further illustrate the application of genomics and proteomics in the study of disease resistance in water buffalo, highlighting the potential of selective breeding and vaccine development to enhance disease resistance. Through a systematic analysis of host-pathogen interaction mechanisms in water buffalo, this study aims to reveal how pathogens influence host responses through immune evasion strategies, providing insights for breeding improvement and vaccine development. Keywords Water buffalo; Immune response; Brucellosis; Foot-and-mouth disease; Selective breeding 1 Introduction Bubalus bubalis plays an important role in agriculture in many countries, especially in Asia and South America. They are mainly used to produce milk and meat, and are often used to cultivate the land. For example, in India, water buffalo are the main dairy-producing animals and have made great contributions to the dairy industry (Dubey, 2018). Water buffalo adapt to tropical and subtropical environments, which makes them particularly useful in places like flood-prone or harsh environments (Martínez-Burnes et al., 2024). Nowadays, people are in a growing demand for buffalo products, and therefore they are more concerned about how to increase their output, which shows that they are of great economic value (Ciuca et al., 2020). However, water buffalo are prone to infection with various pathogens. These pathogens can affect their health and also reduce their yields. Some viral diseases, such as foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest and viral diarrhea of bovine can not only infect water buffalo, but also infect scalpers. These diseases are contagious and are threatening to both animal and human health. Water buffalo are also prone to parasitic infections, such as Neospora and Toxoplasma. These parasites can cause abortion or embryonic death, leading to economic losses (Kengradomkij et al., 2015). There are also some protozoa parasites, such as Babes and Taylor, that also infect water buffalo. Although water buffalo are usually milder than scalpers (Silveira et al., 2016; Benítez et al., 2018), the presence of these pathogens suggests that we need to continue to pay attention to them, study and monitor them in order to find good prevention and control methods. This article will systematically talk about how water buffalo and pathogens interact, focusing on new advances in vaccines and immunotherapy. We will also look at the genetic and environmental factors that affect buffalo's disease resistance, hoping to improve buffalo's health and yield through targeted measures, thereby helping farmers and agricultural economies that rely on buffalo. 2 Pathogens and Diseases Impacting Water Buffalo 2.1 Bacterial pathogens A bacteria called Brucella abortus can cause buffalo brucella. This disease can also be transmitted to people, and it will affect buffalo reproduction and cause economic losses. Studies have found that water buffalo can react
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ4ODYzNA==