EXPLORATION OF OXIDATIVE STRESS LEVELS AND T-CELL PROFILES IN PATIENTS WITH BOTH CHRONIC CHAGAS DISEASE AND TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS

BRENDA DINATALE; FLORENCIA GONZÁLEZ; MARIA FLORENCIA PACINI; CAMILA BULFONI BALBI; MARA OJEDA; LOURDES CÁCERES; PABLO EVELSON; SUSANA LIOI; RODOLFO LEIVA; KARINA RAMOS; MARIEL ALTONAGA; ANA ROSA PÉREZ

Congreso; LXXI Reunión Anual de la Sociedad Argentina de Inmunología; 2023

Chagas disease (ChD) and type-2 Diabetes mellitus (DM) are both chronic, progressive and often comorbid diseases. However, little is known about their reciprocal influences and the immune patterns of individuals presenting DM comorbidity-associated with chronic ChD and how its influences each other. For this reason, we decided to explore the level of cellular oxidative stress and different parameters of T-cell populations among chronic T. cruzi infected patients with and without DM. The study population consisted of 1) Individuals with both pathologies (ChD+DM), 2) patients with chronic infection by Trypanosoma cruzi (ChD), 3) individuals with DM, and 4) healthy age- and sex-matched volunteers (Co). ChD patients with distinct clinical forms were included (with and without chronic myocarditis). None of these patients received antiparasitic treatment or had other concomitant pathological disorder (n=6-10/group; age range: 45-65 years). For this, blood samples were obtained in fasting and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated using Ficoll-Paque gradient. All studies were made by flow cytometry. Cellular oxidative stress of PBMCs was determined by evaluation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) using fluorescent probes. We also evaluated phenotypic and functional parameters among T-cells, including Tregs (CD4+CD25+CD127-), effector/memory (CCR7/CD45RA), Th1 (IFN𝛄+) and CD8+ cytotoxic cells (IFN𝛄+/CD107a+). The production of ROS and NO tend to be more pronounced in DM than in ChD patients, (independently DM comorbidity or cardiac involvement), but without statistical significance. A trend towards enhanced CD4+IFNγ+ production was observed in ChD+DM and DM patients compared to ChD and Co [mean±SEM, (%) Co=16±1.5; ChD=19.2±2.0; ChD+DM=19.4±2.1; DM=21.7±1.9]. Treg frequency was slightly enhanced in ChD and ChD+DM compared to Co and DM individuals (in both cases p