title: Cardiovascular risk factors in chronic Chagas' disease are associated with a different profile of putative heart-pathogenic antibodies.
abstract: Given that cardiovascular risk factors (CRF), such as smoking, alcoholism and hypertension, may contribute to the development of heart lesions, chronically Trypanosoma cruzi-infected individuals were studied to explore the relationship between the presence of such CRF, cardiomyopathy and antibodies that have been proposed to play a pathogenetic role in Chagas' disease. The targets of these antibodies were T. cruzi antigens such as cruzipain (Cz), a P ribosomal antigen (P2), and a component of myelin sheaths also present in T. cruzi (sulphatide). Individuals were classified into four groups on the basis of specific serology and presence of CRF: subjects with T. cruzi infection and CRF; those with positive serology and no CRF; seronegatives with CRF; and seronegatives without CRF, were analysed. Seronegatives or seropositives with CRF showed a greater occurrence of heart involvement (chest X-ray and/or electrocardiogram abnormalities). Seropositives with CRF displayed significantly higher levels of antisulphatide antibodies than the three remaining groups and higher levels of antibodies against Cz and P2 compared to the seropositives without CRF. Increased amounts of anti-P2 and antisulphatide antibodies were also found in seropositives with marked heart involvement. The presence of CRF is associated with a different profile of antibody responses and degree of cardiac effects.
authors.affiliation: INTEBIO, Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas, Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Santa Fe, Argentina.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Diez
authors.forename: Susana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gea
authors.forename: Iván
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Marcipar
authors.forename: Stella Maris
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Pezzotto
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Beloscar
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Pellizzon
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marcipar
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bottasso
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D002598:Chagas Cardiomyopathy / Q000276:immunology*; D014355:Chagas Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D012307:Risk Factors; D014349:Trypanosoma cruzi / Q000276:immunology