Evidence of Different IL-1 β Activation Pathways in Innate Immune Cells From Indeterminate and Cardiac Patients With Chronic Chagas Disease

Conclusions: We suggest some distinct molecular mechanisms for production of IL-1β in innate immune cells from patients with different clinical forms of Chagas disease. MMP-2 and MMP-9 gelatinases are associated with distinct disease outcomes and IL-1β production. Introduction Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis, is a neglected parasitic disease caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi (1), that affects millions of people in the world (2). During the acute phase, a diffuse and intense inflammation in the cardiomyocytes is observed, which is composed mainly of neutrophils, monocytes, and T lymphocytes. Patients in the chronic phase of Chagas disease are classified in different clinical forms according to the symptoms presented: (1) Indeterminate (IND) with no alterations due the infection (3), (2) cardiac (CARD) with chronic alterations in heart function and structure (4, 5), and (3) digestive with gastrointestinal alterations (6). Dilated cardiomyopathy is the most severe alteration, affecting about 30% of patients in the chronic phase of the disease (7–9). Chronic chagasic cardiomyopathy is the main fibrosing myocarditis among the known heart diseases (10), with chronic low intensity inflammation, progressive tissue destruction, cardiac remodeling, and extensive fibrosis in the heart (11). The collagen in cardiac matrix is replaced by weak fibers trough matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), that cleaves extracellular matrix (ECM...
Source: Frontiers in Immunology - Category: Allergy & Immunology Source Type: research