Role of a 49 kDa Mucin-Associated Surface Protein (MASP49) during the Infection Process and Identification of a Mammalian Cell Surface Receptor.

is the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, a parasitic disease of great medical importance on the American continent. Trypomastigote infection's initial step in a mammalian host is vital for the parasite's life cycle. A trypomastigote's surface presents many molecules, some of which have been proposed to be involved in the infection process, including a glycoprotein family called mucin-associated surface proteins (MASPs).