TRYPANOSOMA CRUZI INFECTION AS AN UNDERLYING FACTOR CATALYZING THE ONSET OF HEMODYNAMIC PERTURBATIONS AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

VOLPINI, XIMENA; QUIROZ, JM; HERRERA, MELISA ROCÍO; HELLRRIEGEL, FLORENCIA; BRUGO, MARIA BELEN; MUSRI, MELINA; FOZZATTI, LAURA; STEMPIN, CINTHIA; PEREZ, ANA ROSA; MOTRAN, CLAUDIA

San Luis

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

Sociedad Argentina de Inmunología

According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading global cause of death. Chagas disease (CD), caused by Trypanosoma cruzi (TC) infection, is considered the primary cause of death due to infectious cardiomyopathy. Historically, seropositive patients without discernible symptoms of cardiomyopathy have been grouped under the "indeterminate" classification. This categorization has perpetuated the lack of care of ~70% of CD patients. By the measurement of the carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV), recent research has unveiled that indeterminate patients manifest increased aortic stiffness (IAS), the primary risk indicator of developing CVD. To contribute to the current extent of knowledge of TC infection as a factor in triggering CVD and hemodynamic disorders, we have evaluated “residual” hemodynamic and metabolic risk factors in infected mice and CD-patients, respectively. To study hemodynamic risk factors associated with vessel alterations, Balb/c mice were infected with TC (Tulahuen strain), and the cell populations of thoracic, abdominal, and brachiocephalic aortic segments were analyzed by FACS at different days post-infection (dpi), using uninfected mice as controls. In the acute phase of infection (18 dpi), TC induced increased frequency (%) of CD45+ CD3+ (p