A Minimal Medium For The Cultivation Of Infective Trypanosoma Cruzi Epimastigotes

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Abstract
In a culture medium containing bovine liver catalase, but lacking exogenous free amino acids, only 2 vitamins (choline and folic acid) were found to be essential for the continuous in vitro multiplication of 7 different infective strains of T. cruzi. The provision of additional vitamins or sugars had no stimulatory effect under these culture conditions. A trypanosomal minimal medium composed only of bovine liver catalase, choline, folic acid, glucose and inorganic salts was developed. This was able to support the continuous cultivation of T. cruzi for > 12 consecutive passages (i.e., .apprx. 160 days of culture). By several criteria, namely, morphological features as seen by EM, infectivity for vertebrate and invertebrate hosts, glucose utilization and protein biosynthesis, this medium (which is the simplest so far described) proved to be nutritionally adequate for Trypanosoma spp. The medium appeared to be relatively specific for T. cruzi, as it did not support the growth of T. rangeli and American isolates of leishmania.

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