Chagas disease Tag

B cell responses in chronic Chagas disease: Waning of Trypanosoma cruzi-specific antibody-secreting cells following successful etiological treatment

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Background: A drawback in the treatment of chronic Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis) is the long time required to achieve complete loss of serological reactivity, the standard for determining treatment efficacy. Methods: Antibody-secreting and memory B cells specific for Trypanosoma cruzi...

Read More

Avoiding clinical trial failures in neglected tropical diseases: The example of Chagas disease

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Human clinical trials are expensive, and when they fail, they create the impression that a problem is intractable, thus depressing interest in future attempts. For neglected tropical diseases, where there are likely limited numbers of "shots on...

Read More
T. cruzi amastigtoes in skeletal muscle cell

Researchers discover potential treatment for Chagas disease

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text] [caption id="attachment_7450" align="aligncenter" width="600"] The skeletal muscle of a mouse infected with Trypanosoma cruzi is shown under a microscope. (Submitted by Fernando Sanchez)[/caption] The condition affects tens of millions across the Americas but lacks effective treatments Researchers from the...

Read More
University of Georgia Distinguished Research Professor, Department of Cellular Biology, and UGA Athletic Association Distinguished Professor in Biological Sciences

In the News: New study from the Tarleton Research Group

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Rick Tarleton and colleagues recently published their new study, "Discovery of an orally active benzoxaborole prodrug effective in the treatment of Chagas disease in non-human primates" in Nature Microbiology. Check out these news stories about the study. Behind...

Read More
University of Georgia Distinguished Research Professor, Department of Cellular Biology, and UGA Athletic Association Distinguished Professor in Biological Sciences

Discovery of an orally active benzoxaborole prodrug effective in the treatment of Chagas disease in non-human primates

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Trypanosoma cruzi, the agent of Chagas disease, probably infects tens of millions of people, primarily in Latin America, causing morbidity and mortality. The options for treatment and prevention of Chagas disease are limited and underutilized. Here we...

Read More

Trypanosoma cruzi Letm1 is involved in mitochondrial Ca 2+ transport, and is essential for replication, differentiation, and host cell invasion

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Leucine zipper-EF-hand containing transmembrane protein 1 (Letm1) is a mitochondrial inner membrane protein involved in Ca2+ and K+ homeostasis in mammalian cells. Here, we demonstrate that the Letm1 orthologue of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, is...

Read More

Immune exhaustion in chronic Chagas disease: Pro-inflammatory and immunomodulatory action of IL-27 in vitro

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]In chronic Chagas disease, Trypanosoma cruzi-specific T-cell function decreases over time, and alterations in the homeostatic IL-7/IL-7R axis are evident, consistent with a process of immune exhaustion. IL-27 is an important immunoregulatory cytokine that shares T-cell signaling...

Read More

High variation in immune responses and parasite phenotypes in naturally acquired Trypanosoma cruzi infection in a captive non-human primate breeding colony in Texas, USA

Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of human Chagas disease, is endemic to the southern region of the United States where it routinely infects many host species. The indoor/outdoor housing configuration used in many non-human primate research and breeding facilities in the southern of the USA...

Read More
Roberto Docampo, a leading researcher in the study of acidocalcisomes in trypanosomatids

Deletion of a Golgi protein in Trypanosoma cruzi reveals a critical role for Mn2+ in protein glycosylation needed for host cell invasion and intracellular replication

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Trypanosoma cruzi is a protist parasite and the causative agent of American trypanosomiasis or Chagas disease. The parasite life cycle in its mammalian host includes an intracellular stage, and glycosylated proteins play a key role in host-parasite...

Read More
University of Georgia Distinguished Research Professor, Department of Cellular Biology, and UGA Athletic Association Distinguished Professor in Biological Sciences

Reduced Trypanosoma cruzi-specific humoral response and enhanced T cell immunity after treatment interruption with benznidazole in chronic Chagas disease

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Background: Interruption of benznidazole therapy due to the appearance of adverse effects, which is presumed to lead to treatment failure, is a major drawback in the treatment of chronic Chagas disease. Methods: Trypanosoma cruzi-specific humoral and T cell responses, T...

Read More