Interactive Multimedia to Teach the Life Cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi, the Causative Agent of Chagas Disease
Figure 8
Schematic 3D view of the phases of T. cruzi interaction in the invertebrate host.
(A) Insect vector ingesting trypomastigotes present in the blood of the vertebrate host during a blood meal. (B) In the stomach of the insect, trypomastigotes transform into epimastigotes and spheromastigotes. (C) Epimastigotes multiply in the midgut and attach to the perimicrovillar membranes of the intestinal cells. (D) Note that this adhesion occurs predominantly through the region of the flagellum. (E) At the most posterior region, many of the epimastigotes transform into metacyclic trypomastigotes and adhere to the cuticle lining the epithelium of the rectum and the rectal sac of the insect. (F) When the parasites leave the epithelium, the metacyclic trypomastigotes may be eliminated in the urine or feces of the insect. These images were made based on micrographs of transmission electron microscopy and video microscopy.