In situ evaluation of acute and chronic infection with Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigotes (TCI and TcVI) in BALB/c and C57BL/6 inbred mice

• Grant number: 14/21338-2
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Effective date (Start): January 01, 2015
• Effective date (End): January 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Parasitology
• Cooperation agreement: Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES)
• Principal Investigator: Renato Arruda Mortara
• Grantee: Bianca Rodrigues Lima Ferreira
• Home Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 11/51475-3 - Molecular and cellular biology of the parasitism by Trypanosoma cruzi, AP.TEM

Abstract

Trypanosoma cruzi is the etiologic agent of Chagas' disease and is found in both vertebrate and invertebrate hosts. Different strains of T. cruzi present diverse characteristics in their genotype and phenotype, which interferes with host-pathogen interactions; thus, the parasite has been classified into six groups (TcI to TcVI). T. cruzi infection develops in acute and chronic phases with different characteristics with an important role of the immune system that has a dual role as protective and pathogenic element. Mouse is a well-established experimental model of Chagas' disease because it reproduces important features of human infection and provides an experimental basis for the study of host lineages and the parasite strain. Thus, we propose to evaluate the infection by G (TcI) and CL (TcVI) strains of T. cruzi, which have different tropisms and a distinct infection courses, in two lineages of inbred mice (C57BL/6 and BALB/c) that display variable susceptibility degrees for each T. cruzi strain. This study aims to develop pioneering in situ analysis of acute and chronic infection by confocal microscopy and conventional histology, to evaluate serum levels of cytokines, and to analyze immune cell populations in the spleen and peritoneum during experimental infection. The results may provide new information about the parasite behavior within host tissues and highlight new ways for development and efficacy evaluation of new drugs against the pathogen. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FERREIRA, BIANCA L.; FERREIRA, EDEN R.; DE BRITO, MARLON V.; SALU, BRUNO R.; OLIVA, MARIA L. V.; MORTARA, RENATO A.; ORIKAZA, CRISTINA M. BALB/c and C57BL/6 Mice Cytokine Responses to Trypanosoma cruzi Infection Are Independent of Parasite Strain Infectivity. FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY, v. 9, MAR 26 2018. Web of Science Citations: 4.

FERREIRA, BIANCA LIMA; ORIKAZA, CRISTINA MARY; CORDERO, ESTEBAN MAURICIO; MORTARA, RENATO ARRUDA. Trypanosoma cruzi: single cell live imaging inside infected tissues. Cellular Microbiology, v. 18, n. 6, p. 779-783, JUN 2016. Web of Science Citations: 2.

FLORENTINO, P. T. V.; REAL, F.; BONFIM-MELO, A.; ORIKAZA, C. M.; FERREIRA, E. R.; PESSOA, C. C.; LIMA, B. R.; SASSO, G. R. S.; MORTARA, R. A. An Historical Perspective on How Advances in Microscopic Imaging Contributed to Understanding the Leishmania Spp. and Trypanosoma cruzi Host-Parasite Relationship. BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL, 2014. Web of Science Citations: 3.