chagas disease
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2022 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 100955
Author(s):  
Roberto M. Saraiva ◽  
Mauro Felippe F. Mediano ◽  
Marcel S.B. Quintana ◽  
Gilberto Marcelo Sperandio da Silva ◽  
Andréa R. Costa ◽  
...  

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Ledien ◽  
Zulma M. Cucunubá ◽  
Gabriel Parra-Henao ◽  
Eliana Rodríguez-Monguí ◽  
Andrew P. Dobson ◽  
...  

AbstractAge-stratified serosurvey data are often used to understand spatiotemporal trends in disease incidence and exposure through estimating the Force-of-Infection (FoI). Typically, median or mean FoI estimates are used as the response variable in predictive models, often overlooking the uncertainty in estimated FoI values when fitting models and evaluating their predictive ability. To assess how this uncertainty impact predictions, we compared three approaches with three levels of uncertainty integration. We propose a performance indicator to assess how predictions reflect initial uncertainty.In Colombia, 76 serosurveys (1980–2014) conducted at municipality level provided age-stratified Chagas disease prevalence data. The yearly FoI was estimated at the serosurvey level using a time-varying catalytic model. Environmental, demographic and entomological predictors were used to fit and predict the FoI at municipality level from 1980 to 2010 across Colombia.A stratified bootstrap method was used to fit the models without temporal autocorrelation at the serosurvey level. The predictive ability of each model was evaluated to select the best-fit models within urban, rural and (Amerindian) indigenous settings. Model averaging, with the 10 best-fit models identified, was used to generate predictions.Our analysis shows a risk of overconfidence in model predictions when median estimates of FoI alone are used to fit and evaluate models, failing to account for uncertainty in FoI estimates. Our proposed methodology fully propagates uncertainty in the estimated FoI onto the generated predictions, providing realistic assessments of both central tendency and current uncertainty surrounding exposure to Chagas disease.


2022 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. e0010040
Author(s):  
David Horn

The parasitic trypanosomatids cause lethal and debilitating diseases, the leishmaniases, Chagas disease, and the African trypanosomiases, with major impacts on human and animal health. Sustained research has borne fruit by assisting efforts to reduce the burden of disease and by improving our understanding of fundamental molecular and cell biology. But where has the research primarily been conducted, and which research areas have received the most attention? These questions are addressed below using publication and citation data from the past few decades.


2022 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Indira Chakravarti ◽  
Monica Miranda-Schaeubinger ◽  
Adriana Ruiz-Remigio ◽  
Carlos Briones-Garduño ◽  
Edith A. Fernández-Figueroa ◽  
...  

Trypanosoma cruzi infection leads to Chagas disease (CD), a neglected tropical infection of significant public health importance in South and Central America and other, non-endemic, countries. Pregnant women and their children are of particular importance to screen as T. cruzi can be transmitted vertically. The objective of this study was to screen for T. cruzi infection among pregnant women from endemic areas seen at the Hospital General de Mexico for prenatal care, so that they and their children may be quickly connected to CD treatment. Pregnant women were recruited through the hospital prenatal clinic and screened for T. cruzi infection using a series of serological and molecular tests. Of 150 screened patients, mean age 26.8 (SD 6.4), 30 (20.0%) were positive by at least one diagnostic test. Of these, only nine (6%) were positive as determined by PCR. Diagnosis of chronic CD is difficult in endemic places like Mexico due to the limitations of current commercially available diagnostic tests. Further evaluation of diagnostic performance of various assays could improve current CD diagnostic algorithms and proper care management in these regions. Genetic variability in the parasite may also play a role in the differing assay performances seen in this study, and this may be a valuable avenue of further research.


Molecules ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 411
Author(s):  
Alba L. Montoya ◽  
Eileni R. Gil ◽  
Emily L. Heydemann ◽  
Igor L. Estevao ◽  
Bianca E. Luna ◽  
...  

Chagas disease (CD) can be accurately diagnosed by detecting Trypanosoma cruzi in patients’ blood using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). However, parasite-derived biomarkers are of great interest for the serological diagnosis and early evaluation of chemotherapeutic efficacy when PCR may fail, owing to a blood parasite load below the method’s limit of detection. Previously, we focused on the detection of specific anti-α-galactopyranosyl (α-Gal) antibodies in chronic CD (CCD) patients elicited by α-Gal glycotopes copiously expressed on insect-derived and mammal-dwelling infective parasite stages. Nevertheless, these stages also abundantly express cell surface glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored glycoproteins and glycoinositolphospholipids (GIPLs) bearing nonreducing terminal β-galactofuranosyl (β-Galf) residues, which are equally foreign to humans and, therefore, highly immunogenic. Here we report that CCD patients’ sera react specifically with synthetic β-Galf-containing glycans. We took a reversed immunoglycomics approach that entailed: (a) Synthesis of T. cruzi GIPL-derived Galfβ1,3Manpα-(CH2)3SH (glycan G29SH) and Galfβ1,3Manpα1,2-[Galfβ1,3]Manpα-(CH2)3SH (glycan G32SH); and (b) preparation of neoglycoproteins NGP29b and NGP32b, and their evaluation in a chemiluminescent immunoassay. Receiver-operating characteristic analysis revealed that NGP32b can distinguish CCD sera from sera of healthy individuals with 85.3% sensitivity and 100% specificity. This suggests that Galfβ1,3Manpα1,2-[Galfβ1,3]Manpα is an immunodominant glycotope and that NGP32b could potentially be used as a novel CCD biomarker.


Author(s):  
Kelly E Allen ◽  
Megan W Lineberry

Abstract Trypanosoma cruzi is the causative agent of Chagas disease in humans and dogs in the Americas. Transmission predominantly occurs via the feces of infected kissing bugs (Hemiptera: family Reduviidae; subfamily Triatominae) contaminating bite site wounds or mucous membranes. To better understand Chagas disease entomologic risk in Oklahoma, kissing bugs collected from within the state were tested for T. cruzi DNA. Data including county of insect collection, species and instar, and specific locations where specimens were found were collated. Triatomines were also tested by PCR to potentially identify DNA of vertebrate species on which specimens had recently fed. In total, 110 kissing bugs from 22 counties were tested. All triatomines were identified as Triatoma sanguisuga nymphs or adults, with the exception of one possible T. lecticularia adult. Trypanosoma cruzi DNA was detected in 22 (20%) triatomines from 12 counties spanning the state. The majority of T. cruzi PCR positive kissing bugs were found inside homes or associated structures (i.e., garages, porches). Vertebrate DNA was identified in 27 (24.5%) triatomines, with human DNA detected in 25 (92.6%) of these specimens, and canine and raccoon DNA detected in one specimen each (3.7%). Two specimens tested positive for both T. cruzi and human DNA and one specimen tested positive for both T. cruzi and raccoon DNA. Results from this study indicate that kissing bugs carrying T. cruzi are widespread in Oklahoma, that positive kissing bugs infest homes and associated structures, and that human-vector, canine-vector, and wildlife-vector contact all occur within the state.


2022 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Imelda Menchaca Armenta ◽  
Antonio E. Gutiérrez Rodríguez ◽  
Hortencia Cortes Pérez ◽  
Jessica Zaragoza Cortes ◽  
Karen Zamora Cerritos

Chagas disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus are the two main causes of Years Lived with Disability. The consequences and possible interaction between both illnesses have been scarcely studied. A population study of blood donors from the Centro Estatal de Transfusión Sanguinea (CETS) was carried out with a reagent related to the Chagas test. Detection was carried out with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) of anti- Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies and also, an HbA1C test was performed with 4 mL of whole blood. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative and qualitative data. The Chi-square test was applied to determine the existence of an association between hyperglycemia and Chagas disease. A total of 4,952 participants were screened. All of the participants (100%) were from Hidalgo State and did not have a chagoma as evidence of having been bitten or denied contact with a “kissing bug”. Of the total, 26 reacted to the first screening test to detect anti-Trypanosoma cruzi antibodies; of these, five were confirmed as positive on the second screening test. The seroprevalence of T. cruzi was 0.01%. The results do not show a clear association but the frequency of hyperglycemia in population with Chagas coincides with that reported by other authors. Considering the scarce clinical–epidemiological evidence between Chagas disease, obesity, and hyperglycemia, long-term follow up of both morbidities is an area of opportunity for clinical and epidemiological study of T. cruzi reactivity.


Vaccines ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Flavio Di Pisa ◽  
Stefano De Benedetti ◽  
Enrico Mario Alessandro Fassi ◽  
Mauro Bombaci ◽  
Renata Grifantini ◽  
...  

Chagas disease (CD) is a vector-borne parasitosis, caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, that affects millions of people worldwide. Although endemic in South America, CD is emerging throughout the world due to climate change and increased immigratory flux of infected people to non-endemic regions. Containing of the diffusion of CD is challenged by the asymptomatic nature of the disease in early infection stages and by the lack of a rapid and effective diagnostic test. With the aim of designing new serodiagnostic molecules to be implemented in a microarray-based diagnostic set-up for early screening of CD, herein, we report the recombinant production of the extracellular domain of a surface membrane antigen from T. cruzi (TcSMP) and confirm its ability to detect plasma antibodies from infected patients. Moreover, we describe its high-resolution (1.62 Å) crystal structure, to which in silico epitope predictions were applied in order to locate the most immunoreactive regions of TcSMP in order to guide the design of epitopes that may be used as an alternative to the full-length antigen for CD diagnosis. Two putative, linear epitopes, belonging to the same immunogenic region, were synthesized as free peptides, and their immunological properties were tested in vitro. Although both peptides were shown to adopt a structural conformation that allowed their recognition by polyclonal antibodies raised against the recombinant protein, they were not serodiagnostic for T. cruzi infections. Nevertheless, they represent good starting points for further iterative structure-based (re)design cycles.


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina V. Poncini ◽  
Alejandro F. Benatar ◽  
Karina A. Gomez ◽  
Gabriel A. Rabinovich

Trypanosoma cruzi, the protozoan parasite causative agent of Chagas disease, affects about seven million people worldwide, representing a major global public health concern with relevant socioeconomic consequences, particularly in developing countries. In this review, we discuss the multiple roles of galectins, a family of β-galactoside-binding proteins, in modulating both T. cruzi infection and immunoregulation. Specifically, we focus on galectin-driven circuits that link parasite invasion and inflammation and reprogram innate and adaptive immune responses. Understanding the dynamics of galectins and their β-galactoside-specific ligands during the pathogenesis of T. cruzi infection and elucidating their roles in immunoregulation, inflammation, and tissue damage offer new rational opportunities for treating this devastating neglected disease.


2022 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 2333794X2110704
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Handel ◽  
Harriet Hellman ◽  
Edgar Flores ◽  
Christy Beneri

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