Fatal Trypanosoma cruzi Infection in the White Rat

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Abstract
Intraperit. injns. of 1-2 million T. cruzi into week-old rats, accompanied by subsequent injn. in the back of 6.25 mg. cortisone acetate, followed in 24 hrs. by an identical dose of cortisone, resulted in an infection terminating fatally in 5 weeks. Post-mortem examination showed congestion of the meninges, brain, and liver; the spleen was enlarged and the heart dilated, but no gross pathological changes were observed in other organs. Microscopically, there was marked invasion of the cardiac muscle cells, and of neurons and glia of the brain; bone marrow and liver were moderately parasitized, and spleen and lungs had mild invasion. Kidney and striated muscle were not invaded. Passage of the parasites from infected rats to uninfected, treated with cortisone as above, resulted in increased virulence of the trypanosome, and death of the rats in 2_3 wks.

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