Structure-guided Development of Therapeutic and Diagnostic Solutions for Chagas’ Disease

Chagas disease, caused by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, is an increasing global public health concern killing 12,000 people per annum worldwide and infecting eight million individuals, with the majority remaining undiagnosed. Despite its profound health impact in both endemic and non-endemic areas, no vaccine is available, and the existing therapies are outdated, producing severe side effects.

Two conserved T. cruzi antigens, called Tc80 and Tc24, have recently been identified as the key factors for invasion and are the leading candidates for a Chagas vaccine.
In this seminar, we will present the cryo-EM structures of Tc80 in open and closed conformation and discuss on-going work to characterise the immunogenicity of both antigens, using an integrative structural approach towards new therapeutic and diagnostic solutions for Chagas disease.