title: Trypanosoma cruzi: variation in susceptibility of inbred strains of rats.
abstract: Eight strains of male rats (AUG, BN, LEW, LIS, WAG, F 344, LOU/M, DA) and 3 strains of female rats (LEW, F 344, KGH) were challenged with 15 X 10(4) trypomastigotes of the Tehuantepec strain of T. cruzi. Parasitemia and mortality were observed for 60 days. Varying degrees of susceptibility were demonstrated between strains: complete resistance (R), no parasitemia; low resistance (LR), mild parasitemia; and no resistance (NR), high parasitemia. The differences in susceptibility to T. cruzi, using inbred strains of rats, were unrelated to Rt-1 haplotype. However, the level of parasitemia and host survival are not necessarily related; both male and female F 344 hosts are susceptible (NR) to T. cruzi but only females survive.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000276:immunology* / Q000401:mortality; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D005802:Genes, MHC Class II; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D008285:Major Histocompatibility Complex; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains / Q000235:genetics*; D012376:Rodent Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D013045:Species Specificity; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000472:pathogenicity*