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Microorganisms
Volume 13
Issue 11
10.3390/microorganisms13112447
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Vaccination with a Trypanosoma cruzi Protein Extract Plus BCG∆BCG1419c Promotes a Balanced Th1/Th2 Immune Profile That Improves Control of Acute Chagas Disease in BALB/c Mice

by
Olivia Rodríguez-Morales
1,*,
Minerva Arce-Fonseca
1,†,
Dulce Mata-Espinosa
2,
Alberto Aranda-Fraustro
3,
José Luis Rosales-Encina
4 and
Mario Alberto Flores-Valdez
5,*
1
Laboratorio de Inmunología Molecular y Protéomica, Departamento de Biología Molecular, Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, Mexico City 14080, Mexico
2
Laboratorio de Patología Experimental, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, Mexico City 14080, Mexico
3
Departamento de Patología, Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, Mexico City 14080, Mexico
4
Laboratorio de Biología Molecular, Departamento de Infectómica y Patogénesis Molecular, Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Mexico City 07360, Mexico
5
Biotecnología Médica y Farmacéutica, Centro de Investigación y Asistencia en Tecnología y Diseño del Estado de Jalisco, A. C., Guadalajara 44270, Mexico
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Died on 4 August 2024.
Microorganisms 2025, 13(11), 2447; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13112447 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 10 September 2025 / Revised: 20 October 2025 / Accepted: 23 October 2025 / Published: 25 October 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Microparasite Research)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Adjuvants in vaccine candidates against Chagas disease (ChD) have been tested with the aim of improving efficacy against this disease. Trypanosoma cruzi total protein extract (TcTPE) combined with Mycobacterium bovis BCG Pasteur strain ATCC 35734 or its isogenic derivative mutant BCGΔBCG1419c—in which the BCG1419c gene was deleted—were used as a vaccine formulation in BALB/c mice. After immunization and T. cruzi challenge, parasitological and clinical parameters of acute stage were recorded. Antibody titers, cytokine concentrations, macroscopic abnormalities, and histological analysis of experimental ChD were determined. The vaccine formulation with the combination of TcTPE and BCGΔBCG1419c, used as the adjuvant, reduced parasitemia by 50%, promoted a survival rate of 80%, improved the clinical status, favored greater body weight gain, induced high titers of specific anti-T. cruzi IgG antibodies and some cytokines, leading to a balanced Th1/Th2 immunological profile as well as a lower degree of inflammation and tissue damage (50% reduction). A good protective effect in the acute stage of experimental ChD was observed by favorably modulating the immune response and reducing heart and muscle damage, therefore, highlighting that the combination tested here for the control of ChD provides a promising basis that warrants further investigation to validate a future potential translation to humans.
Keywords: Chagas disease; Trypanosoma cruzi; BCG; adjuvant; vaccine; Mycobacterium bovis Chagas disease; Trypanosoma cruzi; BCG; adjuvant; vaccine; Mycobacterium bovis

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MDPI and ACS Style

Rodríguez-Morales, O.; Arce-Fonseca, M.; Mata-Espinosa, D.; Aranda-Fraustro, A.; Rosales-Encina, J.L.; Flores-Valdez, M.A. Vaccination with a Trypanosoma cruzi Protein Extract Plus BCG∆BCG1419c Promotes a Balanced Th1/Th2 Immune Profile That Improves Control of Acute Chagas Disease in BALB/c Mice. Microorganisms 2025, 13, 2447. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13112447

AMA Style

Rodríguez-Morales O, Arce-Fonseca M, Mata-Espinosa D, Aranda-Fraustro A, Rosales-Encina JL, Flores-Valdez MA. Vaccination with a Trypanosoma cruzi Protein Extract Plus BCG∆BCG1419c Promotes a Balanced Th1/Th2 Immune Profile That Improves Control of Acute Chagas Disease in BALB/c Mice. Microorganisms. 2025; 13(11):2447. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13112447

Chicago/Turabian Style

Rodríguez-Morales, Olivia, Minerva Arce-Fonseca, Dulce Mata-Espinosa, Alberto Aranda-Fraustro, José Luis Rosales-Encina, and Mario Alberto Flores-Valdez. 2025. "Vaccination with a Trypanosoma cruzi Protein Extract Plus BCG∆BCG1419c Promotes a Balanced Th1/Th2 Immune Profile That Improves Control of Acute Chagas Disease in BALB/c Mice" Microorganisms 13, no. 11: 2447. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13112447

APA Style

Rodríguez-Morales, O., Arce-Fonseca, M., Mata-Espinosa, D., Aranda-Fraustro, A., Rosales-Encina, J. L., & Flores-Valdez, M. A. (2025). Vaccination with a Trypanosoma cruzi Protein Extract Plus BCG∆BCG1419c Promotes a Balanced Th1/Th2 Immune Profile That Improves Control of Acute Chagas Disease in BALB/c Mice. Microorganisms, 13(11), 2447. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13112447

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