HARM OF Trypanosoma Cruzi

Trypanosoma cruzi is a protozoan ( one-celled ) parasite that causes a disease called American trypanosomiasis or Chagaâ disease in man.

Small animals such as cats, dogs, guinea pigs, rats, and opossums can serve as reservoirs for the parasite and they can be very important in the spread of the parasite.

The life cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi :
The life cycle is fairly complex and we will not go into all the names of the various immature forms. Basically, kissing bugs feed on the blood of mammals like mosquitoes do. The bug generally bites at night and the bite is not painful. The bug ingests the mature form of T. cruzi from the infected mammal. The parasite goes through several developmental stages in the bug digestive system. Unfortunately, the hygienic practices of the bug are not too appealing while feeding, it defecates on the mammal and T. cruzienters the skin through the bite wound or perhaps an abrasion. It can also enter the mammal through the lips, nose, or eyes that may be contaminated with the bug feces.

Inside the mammal, T. cruzi enters muscles and other cells and starts reproducing by dividing in two. After a few days, the cells rupture and T. cruzi can either enter the circulation and be ingested by the bugs, or enter other cells where they repeat the process of reproducing and rupturing the host cells.

Rarely, perinatal infection can occur, both through in utero transmission (across the placenta), and transmission through ingestion of milk from infected females.

Cats and dogs enter into the life cycle of Trypanosoma cruzi. Pets can become infected through bites of the bug, eating infected bugs, or eating smaller infected animals. T. cruzi can be spread from animals to man and back again through the bites of the kissing bug.

The sign of Trypanosoma infection in dogs include : 

• If large numbers of the parasite entered the heart, an inflammation of the heart may occur, and the dog may suddenly collapse and die, but rarely.
• The diseased heart may fail slowly and could be confused with more common types of heart disease, some dogs show profound weakness and incoordination.

The sign of Trypanosoma infection in cats include : 

• convulsions and paralysis of the hind limbs.
• a large number of the host's cells rupture at the same time and fever may occur.
• Diagnosa of infection with T. cruzi :
• The numbers of the parasite in the blood are very small, and by making a thick smear of blood on a microscope slide and looking at it under high magnification, the organisms can be seen.
• Using a similar procedure, looking at cells from the lymph nodes may reveal the parasite.
• Serologic tests have been developed for the diagnosis of trypanosomiasis.
• The parasite may be found in the heart muscle post mortem.
• Xenodiagnosis ( A very odd, but effective way of diagnosing infections with T. cruzi ). In this procedure, kissing bugs are kept in the laboratory and fed blood or tissue from a person or animal suspected of having the parasite. The bug is then killed and its digestive system is examined for the parasite.

Treatment and prevention of infection with T. cruzi :
There is no known cure for T. cruzi infection in cats and dogs. Because of this and the extreme danger to people, it is generally recommended that infected animals be euthanized.
The most effective means of control is the elimination of the kissing bugs. This is not always easy because the bugs tend to hide in small cracks and crevices of buildings, often safe from the application of pesticides. 

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