Molecular and Celular Mechanisms involved in the Trypanosoma cruzi/Host Cell Interplay

ROMANO PATRICIA; CUETO JUAN; CASASSA ANA; VANRELL MARÍA CRISTINA; GOTTLIEB ROBERTA; COLOMBO MARÍA ISABEL

IUBMB LIFE

JOHN WILEY & SONS INC

Lugar: New York; Año: 2012 p. 387 - 396

1521-6543

The protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi has a complex biological cycle that involves vertebrate and invertebrate hosts. In mammals the infective trypomastigote form of this parasite can invade several cell types by exploiting phagocytic-like or non-phagocytic mechanisms depending on the class of cell involved. Morphological studies showed that when trypomastigotes contact macrophages they induce the formation of plasma membrane protrusions that differ from the canonical phagocytosis that occurs in the case of non-infective epimastigotes. In contrast, when trypomastigotes infect epithelial or muscle cells, the cell surface is minimally modified, suggesting the induction of a different class of process. Lysosomal dependent or independent T. cruzi invasion of host cells are two different models that describe the molecular and cellular events activated during parasite entry into non-phagocytic cells. In this context, we have previously shown that induction of autophagy in host cells before infection favors T. cruzi invasion. Furthermore we demonstrate that autophagosomes and the autophagosomal protein LC3 are recruited to the T. cruzi entry sites and that the newly formed T. cruzi parasitophorous vacuole has characteristics of an autophagolysosome. This review summarizes the current knowledge of the molecular and cellular mechanisms of T. cruzi invasion in non-phagocytic cells. Based on our findings we propose a new model in which T. cruzi takes advantage of the upregulation of autophagy during starvation to increase its successful colonization of host cells.