Testosterone leads to Trypanosoma cruzi glycoprotein synthesis and increased of inflammatory mediators in bone marrow-derived macrophages.

Despite all the scientific progress in recent decades to unravel the immune processes and the way the parasite bypasses the immune system, Chagas disease is still a major public health problem, affecting an estimated 3.5 million people. Among the components that may participate in the response against the parasite, testosterone has been gaining more and more visibility.

The Microbiota-Dependent Worsening Effects of Melatonin on Gut Inflammation.

Dysbiosis and disturbances in gut homeostasis may result in dysregulated responses, which are common in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). These conditions may be refractory to the usual treatments and novel therapies are still necessary to reach a more successful regulation of intestinal immunity. The hormone melatonin (MLT) has been raised as a therapeutic alternative because of its known interactions with immune responses and gut microbiota.

Hypothyroidism impairs the host immune response during the acute phase of Chagas disease.

Diseases associated with thyroid hypofunction have been the subject of studies in infectious models, since several authors have demonstrated a pivotal role of iodinated hormones (thyroxine and triiodothyronine) in the modulation of immune effector responses. Using a model of hypothyroidism induced by anti-thyroid drug, we investigated the influence of hypothyroidism in the course of acute Trypanosoma cruzi infection. For this, male Hannover Wistar rats were challenged with methimazole for 21 days (0.