title: Relationship between DNA damage in liver, heart, spleen and total blood cells and disease pathogenesis of infected rats by Trypanosoma evansi.
abstract: Trypanosoma evansi is an important pathogen that causes changes in nitric oxide (NO) levels and antioxidant enzymes, as well as oxidative stress. The present study evaluated the in vivo effect of T. evansi infection on frequency and index of DNA damage in liver, heart, spleen and total blood of rats. Twenty rats were assigned into two groups with ten rats each, being subdivided into four subgroups (A1 and A2, 5 animals/group; and B1 and B2, 5 animals/group). Rats in the subgroups A1 and A2 were used as control (uninfected) and animals in the subgroups B1 and B2 were inoculated with T. evansi (infected). NO in serum and the comet assay were used to measure DNA damage index (DI) and damage frequency (DF) in liver, heart, spleen and total blood of infected rats. Increased NO levels on days 3 and 9 post-infection (PI) was observed (P < 0.001). Also, it was verified an increase on DI and DF in the evaluated organs on days 3 and 9 PI (P < 0.001). Our data show that T. evansi infection causes genotoxicity due to the production of NO, causing not only the death of the protozoan, but also inducing DNA damage in the host.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil. Electronic address: matheusd.biomed@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Matheus D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Baldissera
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cell Culture, Centro Universitário Franciscano, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Michele R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Sagrillo
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mariângela F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: de Sá
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thirssa H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Grando
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, UFSM, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carine F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cell Culture, Centro Universitário Franciscano, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gerson F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: de Brum
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sônia C A
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: da Luz
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, UFSM, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sérgio S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cell Culture, Centro Universitário Franciscano, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Adriana L B
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: De Mello
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cell Culture, Centro Universitário Franciscano, Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Kátia
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nascimento
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Etiane
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tatsch
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Toxicological Analysis, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rafael N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Moresco
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina (UDESC), Chapecó, SC, Brazil.
authors.forename: Aleksandro S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Silvia G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Monteiro
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D020552:Comet Assay; D018736:DNA Adducts / Q000032:analysis; D004249:DNA Damage; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology*; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D018512:Parasitemia / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013154:Spleen / Q000473:pathology*; D014345:Trypanosoma / Q000472:pathogenicity; D014352:Trypanosomiasis / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D018736:DNA Adducts; D009569:Nitric Oxide
keywords: Comet assay; DNA damage; Genotoxicity; Nitric oxide; Trypanosomosis