Ultrastructural damage of Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigotes exposed to decomplemented immune sera


Por: Fernández-Presas A., Zavala T.J., Becker Fauser I., Merchant M., Guerrero R.L., Willms K.

Publicada: 1 ene 2001
Resumen:
The susceptibility of Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigotes to lysis by normal or immune sera in a complement-dependent reaction has been reported, but the effects induced directly by immune serum depleted of complement remain unstudied. The aim of this work was to study the ultrastructural alterations induced in T. cruzi epimastigotes by immune mouse or rabbit sera with or without complement. A local isolate of T. cruzi (Queretaro) was used in all experiments. Immune sera were raised in both mouse and rabbit by immunization with T. cruzi epimastigote antigens. Light microscopy showed intense agglutination of epimastigotes when incubated with decomplemented mouse or rabbit immune sera. A distinctive ultrastructural feature of this agglutination pattern was the fusion of plasma membranes and a pattern of intercrossing between subpellicular microtubules. Agglutination was associated with fragmentation of nuclear membranes and swelling of cytoplasm, Golgi cisternae, endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria and kinetoplast membranes. Agglutinated parasites also incorporated trypan blue stain. Results of [3H]-thymidine incorporation confirmed that epimastigotes exposed to specific antibodies in the absence of complement were incapable of proliferating. Ultrastructural changes observed in epimastigote micrographs incubated with decomplemented immune mouse sera were statistically significant (P < 0.001) when compared with results obtained from images after incubation with decomplemented normal mouse sera.

Filiaciones:
Fernández-Presas A.:
 Departamento de Microbiologia and Parasitologia, Edificio A, 10 Piso, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Zavala T.J.:
 Departamento de Microbiologia and Parasitologia, Edificio A, 10 Piso, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Becker Fauser I.:
 Departamento de Medicina Experimental, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Merchant M.:
 Departamento de Microbiologia and Parasitologia, Edificio A, 10 Piso, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Guerrero R.L.:
 Departamento de Microbiologia and Parasitologia, Edificio A, 10 Piso, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Willms K.:
 Departamento de Microbiologia and Parasitologia, Edificio A, 10 Piso, Facultad de Medicina, Cuidad Universitaria, 04510 Mexico D.F., Mexico
ISSN: 09320113
Editorial
SPRINGER, 233 SPRING ST, NEW YORK, NY 10013 USA, Estados Unidos America
Tipo de documento: Article
Volumen: 87 Número: 8
Páginas: 619-625
ID de PubMed: 11510997