Persistence of Trypanosoma cruzi in the arterial endothelium of Wistar rats fed a diet rich in fats
Keywords:
TrAteroesclerosisypanosoma cruzi; Enfermedad de Chagas;Abstract
Introducction: Atheromatosis and Chagas’diseases are considered chronic inflammatory cardiovascular diseases.
Objetive: the purpose was to evaluate the complex relationship between both diseases in female Wistar rats (Rattus norvegicus), when external predisposing factors such as the inoculation of the pathogen Trypanosoma cruzi and the ingestion of a diet rich in fat, affect the health of the animal.
Methods: rats infected with 2x104 metacyclic trypomastigotes of T. cruzi (A=8) and healthy rats (C=7) were fed for three months with kibble tacos soaked in liquid pork fat (LPF) and ad libitum water; controls (B=8) infected and (D=7) healthy received the normal laboratory diet (DN). Blood samples from infected rats were obtained for parasitological determination. Groups of four infected rats and three healthy rats were sacrificed at 45 and 90 dpi for anatomo-histopathological and molecular study.
Results: establishment of Chagasic infection with moderate parasitemia in the blood; myocarditis, myositis, and vasculitis of variable intensity, accompanied by well-preserved nests of amastigotes and remains of genomic material (DNA) in the heart and vascular endothelium.
Conclusion: the hyperlipidemic diet is a risk factor for Chagasic rats; no lipid deposits were detected, suggesting the absence of atheromatous plaque formation. The experimental research provided new, valid knowledge for understanding the complex relationship between the two pathologies that affect humans.
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