Although with intact mucosa at colonoscopy, chagasic megacolons have an overexpression of Gal-3.

Objective: To evaluate the density of anti-galectin-3-immunostained cells, collagen percentage, mast cell density and presence of pathological processes in intestinal muscle biopsies of patients.

Methods: Thirty-five patients who underwent intestinal biopsy were selected from 1997 to 2015. Patients were divided into three groups: chagasic patients with mucosal lesion (n=13), chagasic patients with intact mucosa (n=12) and non-chagasic patients with no mucosal lesion (n=10).