Interactive Multimedia to Teach the Life Cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi, the Causative Agent of Chagas Disease
Figure 12
Schematic 3D view of the phases of interaction of the trypomastigote form of T. cruzi with vertebrate cells (cardiac cells).
(A) Attachment of the trypomastigote form to the surface of heart muscle cells. This attachment initiates the process of invasion and is followed by the formation of a parasitophorous vacuole (B). (C) Inside the vacuole, the trypomastigote transforms into an amastigote form and this transformation is accompanied by the digestion of the parasitophorous vacuole membrane. (D) The amastigote is released into the cytoplasm of the host cell and divides several times (E). (F) Following division, the amastigotes transform into trypomastigotes, which are released into the extracellular space. These images were made based on micrographs of transmission electron microscopy and video microscopy.