Trypanosoma cruzi is a protist that is characterized by having only one  flagellum and only one mitochondrion, whose genome is organized in a complex and compact region (in the mitochondrion itself, and near the base of the flagellum), called the kinetoplast. It is an intracellular parasite with a life cycle that involves vertebrates and invertebrates. It is the etiological agent of Chagas disease.

 

	Parasitic forms: Amastigote: spherical and oval, it reproduces in the mammalian cells (mainly in muscle and nerve cells). Epimastigote: long and with the kinetoplast located anterior to the nucleus, it reproduces in the digestive tract of invertebrates.   Trypomastigote: it is also long, but the kinetoplast is located posterior to the nucleus. It is found in mammals’ blood and it infects them.
Trypanosoma cruzi Objective 40X

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