Parasitophorous vacuole

The parasitophorous vacuole (PV) is a structure produced by apicomplexan parasites in the cell of its host. The PV allows the parasite to develop while protected from the phagolysosomes of the host cell. The PV is a bubble-like compartment made of plasma membrane and containing cytoplasm and the parasite. The PV allows the parasite to exist and grow within the cell while protecting it from the host cell defense mechanisms. The PV prevents the acidification of the compartment, the mechanism by which the lysosomes of the host cell would normally destroy an invading parasite. Parasites that form a parasitophorous vacuole as part of their infection process include Plasmodium falciparum, which causes malaria, Toxoplasma gondii, which causes toxoplasmosis, and members of the genus Leishmania, which causes leishmaniasis.