Genetic Adjuvantation of a Cell-Based Therapeutic Vaccine for Amelioration of Chagasic Cardiomyopathy.

ABSTRACT: Chagas disease, caused by infection with the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, is a leading cause of heart disease ("chagasic cardiomyopathy") in Latin America, disproportionately affecting people in resource-poor areas. The efficacy of currently approved pharmaceutical treatments is limited mainly to acute infection, and there are no effective treatments for the chronic phase of the disease. Preclinical models of Chagas disease have demonstrated that antigen-specific CD8⁺ gamma interferon (IFN-γ)-positive T-cell responses are essential for reducing parasite burdens, increasing survival, and decreasing cardiac pathology in both the acute and chronic phases of Chagas disease. In the present study, we developed a genetically adjuvanted, dendritic cell-based immunotherap

SUBMITTER: Konduri V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5563592 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature