Abstract
Kinetoplastida trypanosomatidae microorganisms are protozoan parasites exhibiting a developmental stage in the gut of insect vectors and tissues of vertebrate hosts. During the vertebrate infective stages, these parasites alter the differential expression of virulence genes, modifying their biological and antigenic properties in order to subvert the host protective immune responses and establish a persistent infection. One of the hallmarks of kinetoplastid parasites is their evasion mechanisms from host immunity, leading to disease chronification. The diseases caused by kinetoplastid parasites are neglected by the global expenditures in research and development, affecting millions of individuals in the low and middle-income countries located mainly in the tropical and subtropical regions. However, investments made by public and private initiatives have over the past decade leveraged important lines of intervention that if well-integrated to health care programs will likely accelerate disease control initiatives. This review summarizes recent advances in public health care principles, including new drug discoveries and their rational use with chemotherapeutic vaccines, and the implementation of control efforts to spatially mapping the kinetoplastid infections through monitoring of infected individuals in epidemic areas. These approaches should bring us the means to track genetic variation of parasites and drug resistance, integrating this knowledge into effective stewardship programs to prevent vector-borne kinetoplastid infections in areas at risk of disease spreading.
Highlights
INTRODUCTIONProtozoan infections are one of the most devastating causes of human death worldwide
Protozoan infections are one of the most devastating causes of human death worldwide. These infections are caused by protozoan parasites, microorganisms originally classified in the Kingdom Protozoa, which comprises a diverse group of unicellular eukaryotes [1]
Three distinct kinetoplastids cause human disease: Trypanosoma brucei [human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) or sleeping sickness], Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease), and Leishmania spp. [3, 4], which are still recognized as neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) by the World Health Organization
Summary
Protozoan infections are one of the most devastating causes of human death worldwide. These infections are caused by protozoan parasites, microorganisms originally classified in the Kingdom Protozoa, which comprises a diverse group of unicellular eukaryotes [1]. The majority of the protozoan exists as free-living microorganisms in different aquatic and humid environments, there are many species living in association with host organisms, causing severe human diseases [1, 2]. This is the case of Kinetoplastid parasites, a group of flagellated protozoans that parasitize most plant and animal species; and cause human diseases with public health threats and socialeconomic effects [3]
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