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Chagas disease: modulation of the inflammatory response by acetylcholinesterase in hematological cells and brain tissue

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Abstract

Chagas disease is an acute or chronic illness that causes severe inflammatory response, and consequently, it may activate the inflammatory cholinergic pathway, which is regulated by cholinesterases, including the acetylcholinesterase. This enzyme is responsible for the regulation of acetylcholine levels, an anti-inflammatory molecule linked to the inflammatory response during parasitic diseases. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate whether Trypanosoma cruzi infection can alter the activity of acetylcholinesterase and acetylcholine levels in mice, and whether these alterations are linked to the inflammatory cholinergic signaling pathway. Twenty-four mice were divided into two groups: uninfected (control group, n = 12) and infected by T. cruzi, Y strain (n = 12). The animals developed acute disease with a peak of parasitemia on day 7 post-infection (PI). Blood, lymphocytes, and brain were analyzed on days 6 and 12 post-infection. In the brain, acetylcholine and nitric oxide levels, myeloperoxidase activity, and histopathology were analyzed. In total blood and brain, acetylcholinesterase activity decreased at both times. On the other hand, acetylcholinesterase activity in lymphocytes increased on day 6 PI compared with the control group. Infection by T. cruzi increased acetylcholine and nitric oxide levels and histopathological damage in the brain of mice associated to increased myeloperoxidase activity. Therefore, an intense inflammatory response in mice with acute Chagas disease in the central nervous system caused an anti-inflammatory response by the activation of the cholinergic inflammatory pathway.

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Acknowledgements

The authors offer their thanks to Professor Mario Steindel from the Protozoology Laboratory of Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) for providing the T. cruzi strain used in this study. The authors also thank The funding agency CNPq for the research productivity Grants and financial resource.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil

    Aniélen D. Silva, Nathieli B. Bottari, Guilherme M. do Carmo, Carine F. Souza, Vanessa S. Machado, Vera M. Morsch, Maria Rosa C. Schetinger & Aleksandro S. Da Silva

  2. Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, RS, Brazil

    Matheus D. Baldissera & Silvia G. Monteiro

  3. Veterinary Pathology Laboratory, Instituto Federal Catarinense (IFC), Concórdia, SC, Brazil

    Ricardo E. Mendes

  4. Department of Animal Science, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina (UDESC), Chapecó, SC, Brazil

    Aleksandro S. Da Silva

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  1. Aniélen D. Silva
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  2. Nathieli B. Bottari
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  3. Guilherme M. do Carmo
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  4. Matheus D. Baldissera
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  5. Carine F. Souza
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  6. Vanessa S. Machado
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  7. Vera M. Morsch
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  8. Maria Rosa C. Schetinger
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  9. Ricardo E. Mendes
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  10. Silvia G. Monteiro
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  11. Aleksandro S. Da Silva
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Aleksandro S. Da Silva.

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The authors have declared no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

The present study was approved by the Ethics Committee for Use of Animals (CEUA) of the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM) under protocol number 3960110915.

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Silva, A.D., Bottari, N.B., do Carmo, G.M. et al. Chagas disease: modulation of the inflammatory response by acetylcholinesterase in hematological cells and brain tissue. Mol Cell Biochem 438, 59–65 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-017-3113-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-017-3113-y

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