Gut Dysbiosis in Chagas Disease. A Possible Link to the Pathogenesis

Chagas disease is caused by the flagellate protozoanTrypanosoma cruzi. Cardiomyopathy and damage to gastrointestinal tissue are the main disease manifestations. There are data suggesting that the immune response toT. cruzidepends on the intestinal microbiota. We hypothesized that Chagas disease is associated with an altered gut microbiome and that these changes are related to the disease phenotype. The stool microbiome from 104 individuals, 73 with Chagas disease (30 with the cardiac, 11 with the digestive, and 32 with the indeterminate form), and 31 healthy controls was characterized using 16S rRNA amplification and sequencing. The QIIME (Quantitative Insights Into Microbial Ecology) platform was used to analyze the data. Alpha and beta diversity indexes did not indicate differences between the groups. However, the relative abundance ofVerrucomicrobia, represented primarily by the genusAkkermansia, was significantly lower in the Chagas disease groups, especially the cardiac group, compared to the controls. Furthermore, differences in the relative abundances ofAlistipes, Bilophila, andDialisterwere observed between the groups. We conclude thatT. cruziinfection results in changes in the gut microbiome that may play a role in the myocardial and intestinal inflammation seen in Chagas disease.