ArticlePloS one2015
Proliferation and differentiation of Trypanosoma cruzi inside its vector have a new trigger: redox status.
Article in PloS one, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers.
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Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 93 citations in OpenAlex.
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- Understanding Sex-biases in Kinetoplastid Infections: Leishmaniasis and Trypanosomiasis.Expert reviews in molecular medicine · 2025Review
- Branched-chain amino acids modulate the proteomic profile of Trypanosoma cruzi metacyclogenesis induced by proline.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2024Article
- α-Glucosidase isoform G contributes to heme detoxification inCurrent research in insect science · 2024Article
- A sticky situation: When trypanosomatids attach to insect tissues.PLoS pathogens · 2023Review
- Glucose metabolism sustains heme-induced Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigote growth in vitro.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2023Article
- The Oxidative Stress and Nervous Distress Connection in Gastrointestinal Disorders.Biomolecules · 2023Review
- Regulatory Functions of Hypoxia in Host-Parasite Interactions: A Focus on Enteric, Tissue, and Blood Protozoa.Microorganisms · 2023Review
- Roles of ADP-Ribosylation during Infection Establishment byPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Iron Uptake ControlsAntioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Hypoxia Effects onPathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- RNA as a feasible marker of Trypanosoma cruzi viability during the parasite interaction with the triatomine vector Rhodnius prolixus (Hemiptera, Triatominae).PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2022Article
- The Parasite Load ofMicroorganisms · 2022Article
- Structural New Data for Mitochondrial Peroxiredoxin FromFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2022Article
- Influence ofInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Trypanosoma cruzi proliferate and differentiate inside different compartments of triatomines gut that is the first environment encountered by T. cruzi. Due to its complex life cycle, the parasite is constantly exposed to reactive oxygen species (ROS). We tested the influence of the pro-oxidant molecules H2O2 and the superoxide generator, Paraquat, as well as, metabolism products of the vector, with distinct redox status, in the proliferation and metacyclogenesis. These molecules are heme, hemozoin and urate. We also tested the antioxidants NAC and GSH. Heme induced the proliferation of epimastigotes and impaired the metacyclogenesis. β-hematin, did not affect epimastigote proliferation but decreased parasite differentiation. Conversely, we show that urate, GSH and NAC dramatically impaired epimastigote proliferation and during metacyclogenesis, NAC and urate induced a significant increment of trypomastigotes and decreased the percentage of epimastigotes. We also quantified the parasite loads in the anterior and posterior midguts and in the rectum of the vector by qPCR. The treatment with the antioxidants increased the parasite loads in all midgut sections analyzed. In vivo, the group of vectors fed with reduced molecules showed an increment of trypomastigotes and decreased epimastigotes when analyzed by differential counting. Heme stimulated proliferation by increasing the cell number in the S and G2/M phases, whereas NAC arrested epimastigotes in G1 phase. NAC greatly increased the percentage of trypomastigotes. Taken together, these data show a shift in the triatomine gut microenvironment caused by the redox status may also influence T. cruzi biology inside the vector. In this scenario, oxidants act to turn on epimastigote proliferation while antioxidants seem to switch the cycle towards metacyclogenesis. This is a new insight that defines a key role for redox metabolism in governing the parasitic life cycle.
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