Temporal variation of Trypanosoma cruzi discrete typing units in asymptomatic Chagas disease patients

Chagas disease caused by Trypanosoma cruzi is a public health problem in Latin America. This parasite displays a high genetic diversity evidenced in six Discrete Typing Units (DTUs) namely TcI–TcVI. The aim of this study was to observe the temporal variation of the DTUs in asymptomatic patients at three different times (10 days interval). The results showed that intermittence is the rule in the bloodstream of Chagas disease patients. The patients showed different detectable DTUs with short time intervals, which favors the clonal histiotropic model and the multiclonality structure of this parasite.