Interactive Multimedia to Teach the Life Cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi, the Causative Agent of Chagas Disease
Figure 10
Schematic 3D view of the phases of interaction of the trypomastigote form of T. cruzi with vertebrate cells (macrophage).
(A) Attachment of the trypomastigote form to the macrophage surface. (B) The process of internalization via phagocytosis begins with the formation of pseudopods and is followed by the recruitment and fusion of host cell lysosomes (C). A parasitophorous vacuole is subsequently formed. The lysosomal content is released into the vacuole, and the parasite is not affected. (D) In the vacuole, the trypomastigote transforms into the amastigote form. (E) This transformation is accompanied by the digestion of the parasitophorous vacuole membrane. (F) The amastigote is released into the cytoplasm of the host cell and divide several times. (G) Following division, the amastigotes transform into trypomastigotes, which show intense and constant movement. (H) The host cell bursts and the parasites reach the extracellular space and, subsequently, the bloodstream. These images were made based on micrographs of transmission electron microscopy and video microscopy.