A mini-exon multiplex polymerase chain reaction to distinguish the major groups of Trypanosoma cruzi and T. rangeli in the Brazilian Amazon

Usefulness of PCR-based assays to assess drug efficacy in Chagas disease chemotherapy: value and limitations

“…Consequently, genetic strain differences may influence parasitaemia in man and partially explain the discrepancies of PCR sensitivity between studies carried out in different endemic areas. For instance, in Bolivia and most part of Brazil, in areas where T. cruzi II stocks circulate, PCR shows high sensitivity, contrasting with areas from the Brazilian Amazon and Mexico, where only T. cruzi I stocks occur (Avila et al 1993, Wincker et al 1994a, b, 1997, Zingales et al 1998, Fernandes et al 2001.…”

Rhodnius stali: new vector infected by Trypanosoma rangeli (Kinetoplastida, Trypanosomatidae)

“…Parasite deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was extracted from the triatomine rectal samples using a Qiagen DNA extraction kit®. The multiplex PCR was performed according to a protocol described by Fernandes et al 14 . This method amplifi es a portion of the non-transcribed spacer of the mini-exon gene that varies between T. cruzi and T. rangeli species, and between lines 1 and 2 of T. cruzi.…”

“…Moreover, it is known that the occurrence of T. cruzi and T. rangeli in the same geographical region, allows for the occurrence of mixed infections in both vertebrate hosts and vectors 1 , making it diffi cult to isolate and differentially diagnose the infection, leading to misdiagnoses of Chagas disease 15 . This situation is of concern, especially in regions where other vector species of T. rangeli are reported, such as the state of Acre, where they occur in addition to R. stali, for example, the species R. pictipes, R. robustus and R. montenegrensis 10,14 .…”

Trypanosomatid EST: a neglected information resource regarding flagellated protozoa?

“…Two major phylogenetic lineages or at least three populations groups are recognized by molecular markers (Fernandes et al 2001: T. cruzi I, T. cruzi II and T. cruzi III zymodemes. The T. cruzi EST collection was not Alternative trans-splicing -One of the post-transcription modifications in trypanosomatids involves trans-splicing site changes (Manning-Cela et al 2002, Helm et al 2008).…”