Introduction: Murine infection with Trypanosoma cruzi (Tc) has been used to study the role of T‐cells in the pathogenesis of human inflammatory idiopathic myositis. Absence of decay‐accelerating factor 1 (Daf1) has been shown to enhance murine T‐cell responses and autoimmunity. Methods: To determine whether Daf1 deficiency can exacerbate Tc‐induced myositis, C57BL/6 DAF+/+ and DAF−/− mice were inoculated with 5 × 104 trypomastigotes, and their morbidity, parasitemia, parasite burden, histopathology, and T‐cell expansion were studied in the acute and chronic stages. Results: DAF−/− mice had lower parasitemia and parasite burden but higher morbidity, muscle histopathology, and increased number of CD44+ (activated/memory phenotype) splenic CD4+ and CD8+ T‐cells. Conclusions: An enhanced CD8+ T‐cell immune‐specific response may explain the lower parasitemia and parasite burden levels and the increase in histopathological lesions. We propose that Tc‐inoculated DAF−/− mice are a useful model to study T‐cell mediated immunity in skeletal muscle tissues. Muscle Nerve 46: 582–587, 2012
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