Alta parasitemia pelo Trypanosoma cruzi em paciente com lupus eritematoso sistêmico Trypanosoma cruzi high parasitemia in patient with systemic lupus erythematosus

É descrito um caso de doença de Chagas com alta parasitemia pelo Trypanosoma cruzi em paciente com lupus eritematoso sistêmico. O xenodiagnóstico foi útil na identificação da parasitemia e o benznidazol foi capaz de reduzir a alta e incomum parasitemia. Em indivíduos com doenças auto-imunes e immunossuprimidos, o benznidazol pode ser uma alternativa no controle da alta parasitemia por Trypanosoma cruzi.<br>A case of Trypanosoma cruzi high parasitemia in patient with systemic lupus erythematosus is reported. A xenodiagnostic test was useful in the identification of high and uncommon parasitemia, and Benznidazole was able to reduce the parasitemia. Benznidazole can be an alternative to control the Trypanosoma cruzi high parasitemia in people with autoimmune disease and immunosuppression

Recrudescence induced by cyclophosphamide of chronic Trypanosoma cruzi infection in mice is influenced by the parasite strain

Reactivation of chronic chagasic patients may occur upon use of immunosuppressive drugs related to kidney or heart transplantation or when they are affected by concomitant HIV infection. This recrudescence, however, does not occur in all chagasic patients exposed to immunosuppressive agents. We therefore investigated the influence of Trypanosoma cruzi strains in the recrudescence of the parasitism in mice at the chronic phase treated with cyclophosphamide, an immunosuppressor that blocks lymphocytes DNA synthesis and therefore controls B cells response. A large variation was detected in the percentages of newly established acute phases in the groups of mice inoculated with the different strains. We suggest that reactivation of chronic T. cruzi infections is influenced by the parasite intrinsic characteristics, a phenomenon that might occur in the human disease

Trypanosoma cruzi infection in offspring born to chagasic C3H/He mice

This study reports the effects of Trypanosoma cruzi infection induced in C3H/He male and female mice born to chagasic mice. An experimental model was established infecting female C3H/He mice with a low virulent T. cruzi clone. In this model, mating, fertilization, pregnancy evolution and delivery was carried out successfully. The offspring was infected at four, six and eigth weeks of age. The results showed that the offspring born to chagasic mothers present decreased resistance to acquired T. cruzi infection. This decreased resistance was expressed by higher levels of parasitaemia and higher mortality rates in offspring born to chagasic mothers than in controls. Age and sex were shown to be important factors of this phenomenon. The results suggest that maternal immune system products can modulate the immune response of the offspring