An Overview of Trypanosoma cruzi Biology Through the Lens of Proteomics: A Review

Abstract

The protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, causative agent of Chagas disease, affects millions of people in endemic Latin American countries and beyond. In Latin America, Chagas disease is an important cause of death and disability, for which vaccines are lacking and improved treatment options are required. Additionally, the factors governing the development of a variety of clinical manifestations during Chagas disease, ranging from complete lack of symptoms to severe irreversible chronic organ damage (mainly cardiac or digestive), remain largely unknown. Much remains to be learned regarding the biology of T. cruzi in order to enhance our understanding of these lines of inquiry. In this context, proteomic methods have been leveraged to investigate different parasite strains, life-cycle forms, subcellular compartments, macromolecular complexes, signaling events and secreted molecules. The factors driving morphological transformation during the life cycle, the composition and functions of the parasite’s organelles and secreted molecules as well as the determinants of pathogenicity have been explored via proteomic methods, yielding insights into the fundamental processes behind the parasite biology and informing drug design and vaccine development. Importantly, the correlation between the wide genetic and phenotypic variability displayed by T. cruzi has been examined through proteomic methods as well. Here, we review the literature on T. cruzi proteomics and discuss it in the light of its limitations and in the context of the parasite’s genetic diversity.