Chagas disease (CD), caused by the protozoa Trypanosoma cruzi, is a chronic illness in which parasites persist in the host-infected tissues for years. T. cruzi invasion in cardiomyocytes elicits the production of pro-inflammatory mediators [TNF-α, IL-1β, IFN-γ; nitric oxide (·NO)], leading to mitochondrial dysfunction with increased superoxide radical (O2·−), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and peroxynitrite generation. We hypothesize that these redox mediators may control parasite proliferation through the induction of intracellular amastigote programmed cell death (PCD). In this work, we show that T. cruzi (CL-Brener strain) infection in primary cardiomyocytes produced an early (24 h post infection) mitochondrial dysfunction with H2O2 generation and the establishment of an oxidative stress evidenced by FoxO3 activation and target host mitochondrial protein expression (MnSOD and peroxiredoxin 3). TNF-α/IL-1β-stimulated cardiomyocytes were able to control intracellular amastigote proliferation compared with unstimulated cardiomyocytes. In this condition leading to oxidant formation, an enhanced number of intracellular apoptotic amastigotes were detected. The ability of H2O2 to induce T. cruzi PCD was further confirmed in the epimastigote stage of the parasite. H2O2 treatment induced parasite mitochondrial dysfunction together with intra-mitochondrial O2·− generation. Importantly, parasites genetically engineered to overexpress mitochondrial Fe-superoxide dismutase (Fe-SODA) were more infective to TNF-α/IL-1β-stimulated cardiomyocytes with less apoptotic amastigotes; this result underscores the role of this enzyme in parasite survival. Our results indicate that cardiomyocyte-derived diffusible mediators are able to control intracellular amastigote proliferation by triggering T. cruzi PCD and that parasite Fe-SODA tilts the process toward survival as part of an antioxidant-based immune evasion mechanism.
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April 2018
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DAPI staining of Candida tropicalis cell chromatin, imaged by laser scanning confocal microscopy. In this issue of the Biochemical Journal, Li et al. discuss the potential to induce apoptosis when treating Candida tropicalis with CGA-N12; for details see pages 1385–1396.
Research Article|
April 05 2018
Cardiomyocyte diffusible redox mediators control Trypanosoma cruzi infection: role of parasite mitochondrial iron superoxide dismutase
Damián Estrada;
Damián Estrada
1Departamento de Bioquímica and Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
2Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
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Gabriela Specker;
Gabriela Specker
1Departamento de Bioquímica and Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
2Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
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Alejandra Martínez;
Alejandra Martínez
1Departamento de Bioquímica and Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
2Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
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Patricia Pereira Dias;
Patricia Pereira Dias
3Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Barbara Hissa;
Barbara Hissa
3Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Luciana O. Andrade;
Luciana O. Andrade
3Departamento de Morfologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Rafael Radi;
Rafael Radi
1Departamento de Bioquímica and Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
2Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
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Lucía Piacenza
1Departamento de Bioquímica and Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
2Center for Free Radical and Biomedical Research, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Montevideo 11800, Uruguay
Correspondence: Lucía Piacenza (lpiacenza@fmed.edu.uy)
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
September 10 2017
Revision Received:
January 29 2018
Accepted:
February 05 2018
Accepted Manuscript online:
February 07 2018
Online ISSN: 1470-8728
Print ISSN: 0264-6021
© 2018 The Author(s). Published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society
2018
Biochem J (2018) 475 (7): 1235–1251.
Article history
Received:
September 10 2017
Revision Received:
January 29 2018
Accepted:
February 05 2018
Accepted Manuscript online:
February 07 2018
Citation
Damián Estrada, Gabriela Specker, Alejandra Martínez, Patricia Pereira Dias, Barbara Hissa, Luciana O. Andrade, Rafael Radi, Lucía Piacenza; Cardiomyocyte diffusible redox mediators control Trypanosoma cruzi infection: role of parasite mitochondrial iron superoxide dismutase. Biochem J 16 April 2018; 475 (7): 1235–1251. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BCJ20170698
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