Trypanosoma cruzi: Mutations in the 3′ untranslated region of calmodulin gene are specific for lineages T. cruzi I, T. cruzi II, and the Zymodeme III isolates

Populations of Trypanosoma cruzi can be clustered in two main phylogenetic lineages, T. cruzi I and T. cruzi II and a third group denominated Zymodeme III (ZIII) has been described. Using 23 isolates representing the two major T. cruzi groups and the Zymodeme III, the 3′ untranslated region (3′UTR) of the calmodulin gene was analyzed. Several mutations located on a 330 bp segment of this 3′UTR were observed, among which three important insertion/deletion events, namely (1) a dinucleotide AG present only in ZIII isolates; (2) a 13 bases purine block missing only in ZIII; and (3) a five base GT block in T. cruzi II. Minimum free energy dot plots show that T. cruzi I and T. cruzi ZIII exhibit similar patterns of optimal and sub-optimal folding of this segment. These mutations in 3′UTR of calmodulin raise the possibility that T. cruzi I and ZIII group are sharing common functional routes.