[Variability of 6 Colombian strains of Trypanosoma cruzi with restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) and random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD)].
Chagas disease, caused by the hemoflagellate Trypanosoma cruzi, is a public health problem in Colombia. Previous reports have indicated the presence of heterogeneity among parasite populations. Six Colombian T. cruzi strains were obtained that differed by host, geographical region and transmission cycle. The genetic variability of each was compared by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), and isoenzymes. A restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) was extracted using the 1.2 kb unit encoding the parasite's H2A histone as a probe. Genetic distances between the isolates varied greatly, from 0.611 to 0.99 as determined by RAPD profiles (M13F and M13R primers), between 0 and 0.81 by RFLP profiles (5 endonucleases), and between 0.10 and 0.55 by isoenzymes (13 enzymatic systems). Genetic distance matrixes derived from each of the three methods showed that Colombian strains exhibit a high degree of genetic differentiation. This may account for the broad clinical spectrum of Chagas disease in Colombia.
Rodríguez
Pilar
P
Laboratorio de Parasitología Molecular, Departamento de Microbiología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, D.C., Colombia.
Escalante
Marcela
M
Díez
Hugo
H
Cuervo
Claudia
C
Montilla
Marleny
M
Rubén Santiago
Nicholls
N
Zarante
Ignacio
I
Puerta
Concepción
C
D000818:Animals; D003105:Colombia; D021141:Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*