Increased angiogenesis parallels cardiac tissue remodelling in experimental acute Trypanosoma cruzi infection.

Background: Angiogenesis has been implicated in tissue injury in several noninfectious diseases, but its role in Chagas disease (CD) physiopathology is unclear.

Objectives: The present study aimed to investigate the effect of Trypanosoma cruzi infection on cardiac angiogenesis during the acute phase of experimental CD.

Methods: The signalling pathway involved in blood vessel formation and cardiac remodelling was evaluated in Swiss Webster mice infected with the Y strain of T.

4-aminopyridyl-based lead compounds targeting CYP51 prevent spontaneous parasite relapse in a chronic model and improve cardiac pathology in an acute model of Trypanosoma cruzi infection.

Background: Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, is the leading cause of heart failure in Latin America. The clinical treatment of Chagas disease is limited to two 60 year-old drugs, nifurtimox and benznidazole, that have variable efficacy against different strains of the parasite and may lead to severe side effects. CYP51 is an enzyme in the sterol biosynthesis pathway that has been exploited for the development of therapeutics for fungal and parasitic infections.