Benznidazole affects expression of Th1, Th17 and Treg cytokines during acute experimental Trypanosoma cruzi infection

 

Mariana Gatto¹, Larissa Ragozo Cardoso Oliveira², Fernanda De Nuzzi Dias³, João Pessoa Araújo Júnior², Carlos Roberto Gonçalves Lima¹, Eliana Peresi Lordelo⁴, Rodrigo Mattos dos Santos¹, Cilmery Suemi Kurokawa¹ 

 

1 Department of Tropical Diseases, Botucatu Medical School, São Paulo State University (UNESP - Univ Estadual Paulista), Av. Professor Mário Rubens Guimarães Montenegro, s/n, Distrito de Rubião Júnior, Botucatu 18.6186-87, SP, Brazil.

2 Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Botucatu Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista), Botucatu, SP, Brazil.

3 Department of Biological Sciences, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP – Univ Estadual Paulista), Araraquara, SP, Brazil.

4 Department of Immunology, University of Western São Paulo (Unoeste), Presidente Prudente, SP, Brazil.

 

ABSTRACT

Background

The present study evaluated the effect of treatment with benznidazole on mRNA expression of IFN-γ, IL-17, IL-10, TGF-β and FoxP3 in spleen and heart tissue of BALB/c mice in the acute phase of an experimental infection with Trypanosoma cruzi, strains JLP or Y.

 

Methods

The mRNA expression of cytokines and parasite load were assessed by q-PCR. Dependent groups were compared using Student's paired t-test and independent groups were compared using Student's unpaired t-test.

 

Results

Infection with the JLP or Y strains increased expression of IFN-γ in the heart and of IL-10 and IL-17 in the spleen and heart compared to uninfected animals. Treatment increased the expression of IFN-γ and decreased the expression of IL-17, IL-10, TGF- β and Foxp3 in spleen and heart tissue compared to untreated infected animals.

 

Conclusion

Benznidazole can induce Th1 profile in the initial of the acute phase. The treatment decreased the parasite load in both organs, although the number of parasites in Y-strain-infected mice remained high. The data suggest that benznidazole may modulate cytokine expression in infection and can be dependent of the strain. However, treatment was not fully effective in the infection provoked by Y strain, probably due to the characteristics of the strain itself.

 

Keywords Chagas disease; Trypanosoma cruzi; Immune response; Cytokines; q-PCR

 

Received: March 29, 2017.

Accepted: November 24, 2017.

 

Correspondence: marianagatto11@hotmail.com

 

Authors’ contributions

All authors contributed equally to this work, from the research design to the writing of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

 

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.