Current Research on Trypanosoma cruzi Infection 2023

Dear Colleagues,

Trypanosoma cruzi is a parasitic protozoan that causes Chagas disease, a critical life-long infection in humans with high prevalence in Latin American countries. This protozoan presents a complex life cycle involving both vertebrate and invertebrate hosts. One crucial step of the life cycle is the process of infection of mammalian cells by some developmental stages of the protozoan. In this process, infective forms (trypomastigotes, transitional forms, and amastigotes) attach to the host cell surface and trigger a process of invasion involving the assembly of an endocytic vacuole known as the parasitophorous vacuole. The parasite can disrupt the membrane lining the vacuole and enter the host cell’s cytoplasm, where it multiplies several times in the form of amastigotes. Subsequently, these transform into trypomastigotes and cell rupture takes place, releasing many trypomastigotes into the intercellular space. When infection occurs in a mammalian host, the parasite induces host responses that involve the participation of different cell types with the stimulation of the production of several molecules that modulate the immune and inflammatory response, leading to lesions observed in several tissues and organs, causing Chagas disease.

This thematic Special Issue aims to present a series of reviews and original articles dealing with all aspects of Trypanosoma cruzi biology and its interaction with hosts in a broad perspective.

Prof. Dr. Carlos Robello
Guest Editor

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