Secreted Cyclophilin CyP19 as an Early Marker for Trypanocidal Treatment Efficiency.

Cyclophilins (CyPs) are a family of enzymes involved in protein folding. , the causative agent of Chagas disease, has a 19-kDa cyclophilin, CyP19, that was found to be secreted in parasite stages of the CL Brener clone and recognized by sera from -infected mice and patients. The levels of specific antibodies against CyP19 in -infected mice and subjects before and after drug treatment were measured by an in-house enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Circulating Cytokine and Chemokine Profiles of Trypanosoma cruzi-Infected Women During Pregnancy and Its Association With Congenital Transmission.

Background: Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, can be transmitted to the offspring of infected women, which constitutes an epidemiologically significant parasite transmission route in nonendemic areas. It is relevant to evaluate differentially expressed factors in T. cruzi-infected pregnant women as potential markers of Chagas congenital transmission.

Trypanosoma cruzi infection in Cyclophilin D deficient mice.

Trypanosoma cruzi is the causative agent of Chagas disease, which is endemic in Latin America and around the world through mother to child transmission. The heart is the organ most frequently affected in the chronic stage of the human infection and depends on mitochondria for the required energy for its activity. Cyclophilins are involved in protein folding and the mitochondrial isoform, Cyclophilin D (CyPD), has a crucial role in the opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore.

Transmigration of Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigotes through 3D cultures resembling a physiological environment.

To disseminate and colonise tissues in the mammalian host, Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastogotes should cross several biological barriers. How this process occurs or its impact in the outcome of the disease is largely speculative. We examined the in vitro transmigration of trypomastigotes through three-dimensional cultures (spheroids) to understand the tissular dissemination of different T.

Infection at the Maternal-Fetal Interface: Implications of Parasite Load in the Congenital Transmission and Challenges in the Diagnosis of Infected Newborns.

is the protozoan unicellular parasite that causes Chagas disease. It can be transmitted from infected mothers to their babies the connatal route, thus being able to perpetuate even in the absence of Triatomine insect vectors. Chagas disease was originally endemic in Central and South America, but migration of infected women of childbearing age has spread the congenital infection to non-endemic areas like North America, Europe, Japan, and Australia.

A Functional Analysis of the Cyclophilin Repertoire in the Protozoan Parasite .

is the etiological agent of Chagas disease. It affects eight million people worldwide and can be spread by several routes, such as vectorborne transmission in endemic areas and congenitally, and is also important in non-endemic regions such as the United States and Europe due to migration from Latin America. Cyclophilins (CyPs) are proteins with enzymatic peptidyl-prolyl isomerase activity (PPIase), essential for protein folding in vivo.

Phenotypic diversity and drug susceptibility of Trypanosoma cruzi TcV clinical isolates.

Trypanosoma cruzi is a genetically heterogeneous group of organisms that cause Chagas disease. It has been long suspected that the clinical outcome of the disease and response to therapeutic agents are, at least in part, related to the genetic characteristics of the parasite. Herein, we sought to validate the significance of the genotype of T.

Some Limitations for Early Diagnosis of Congenital Chagas Infection by PCR.

, the causing agent of Chagas disease, can be transmitted to the offspring of infected pregnant women, thus being an epidemiologically important way of parasite transmission in humans. In addition, the migration of infected women from endemic areas to nonendemic countries may export this parasite infection. The diagnosis of congenital Chagas disease relies on the detection of the parasite because maternal antibodies are passively transferred to infants during pregnancy.

A homolog of cyclophilin D is expressed in and is involved in the oxidative stress-damage response.

Mitochondria have an important role in energy production, homeostasis and cell death. The opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP) is considered one of the key events in apoptosis and necrosis, modulated by cyclophilin D (CyPD), a crucial component of this protein complex. In , the protozoan parasite that causes Chagas disease, we have previously described that mitochondrial permeability transition occurs after oxidative stress induction in a cyclosporin A-dependent manner, a well-known cyclophilin inhibitor.

Oxidative stress damage in the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi is inhibited by Cyclosporin A.

Cyclosporin A (CsA) specifically inhibits the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mPTP). Opening of the mPTP, which is triggered by high levels of matrix [Ca2+] and/or oxidative stress, leads to mitochondrial dysfunction and thus to cell death by either apoptosis or necrosis. In the present study, we analysed the response of Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigote parasites to oxidative stress with 5 mm H2O2, by studying several features related to programmed cell death and the effects of pre-incubation with 1 μ m of CsA.

Biological markers for evaluating therapeutic efficacy in Chagas disease, a systematic review.

The most neglected aspects of Chagas disease (CD) have been patient care and treatment. Despite recent progress in the development of potentially improved drugs, there is no consensus among different research groups on the lack of therapeutic response markers to evaluate efficacy of newly proposed drugs early after treatment. A systematic review of current evidence regarding molecules which are potential biomarkers for therapeutic response has been conducted using quality assessment and target responses as primary criteria.

How to improve the early diagnosis of Trypanosoma cruzi infection: relationship between validated conventional diagnosis and quantitative DNA amplification in congenitally infected children.

Background: According to the Chagas congenital transmission guides, the diagnosis of infants, born to Trypanosoma cruzi infected mothers, relies on the detection of parasites by INP micromethod, and/or the persistence of T. cruzi specific antibody titers at 10-12 months of age.

Methodology And Principal Findings: Parasitemia levels were quantified by PCR in T.

Morphological and biological characterization of cell line developed from bovine Echinococcus granulosus.

The taeniid tapeworm Echinococcus granulosus is the causative agent of echinococcal disease, a major zoonosis with worldwide distribution. Several efforts to establish an in vitro model of E. granulosus have been undertaken; however, many of them have been designed for Echinococcus multilocularis.

Trypanosoma cruzi: biological characterization of a isolate from an endemic area and its susceptibility to conventional drugs.

We describe some biological and molecular characteristics of a Trypanosoma cruzi isolate derived from a Triatomine captured in Nicaragua. PCR based typification showed that this isolate, named Nicaragua, belonged to the lineage Tc I. Nicaragua infected culture cells were treated with allopurinol, showing different behavior according to the cellular compartment, being cardiomyocyte primary cultures more resistant to this drug.