Biology of Trypanosoma cruzi: An update

Resumen

Chagas disease, an illness caused by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi, is clinically and epidemiologically important in Latin America, and particularlyin Brazil. This article presents the main biological characteristics of Trypanosoma cruzi, emphasizing ultrastructural, morphological, evolutionary,transcriptomic, and proteomic aspects. With this purpose a literature review was conducted, which allowed for the construction of different sectionsof the text. The efforts to expand the knowledge of this protist biology may bring positive implications for the understanding of the pathogenesis,control, and above all, treatment of patients affected by this disease.