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Updated: Jul 25, 2026
Mass Isolation and In Vitro Cultivation of Intramolluscan Stages of the Human Blood Fluke Schistosoma Mansoni
Published on: January 14, 2018
Cystoisospora belli: in vitro multiplication in mammalian cells
M B Oliveira-Silva1, E Lages-Silva, D V Resende
1Departamento Ciências Biológicas-Disciplina de Parasitologia, Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro, Rua Frei Paulino, 30, 38025-180 Uberaba, MG, Brazil. mbosilva@yahoo.com.br <mbosilva@yahoo.com.br>
Abstract:
Intracellular development of Cystoisospora belli was demonstrated in 4 different mammalian cell lines. Human ileocecal adenocarcinoma (HCT-8), epithelial carcinoma of lung (A549), Madin-Darby bovine kidney (MDBK), and African green monkey kidney (VERO) were exposed in vitro to C. belli sporozoites, which had been isolated from the feces of HIV-AIDS patients. Parasites invaded all the cellular types between 4 and 12h after exposure and multiplication was demonstrated after 24 h. Grater number of merozoites formed in VERO cells, followed by HCT-8. In the MDBK and HCT-8 cells, the parasitophorous vacuole was less evident and immobile merozoites were observed in the cytoplasm. In VERO cells, one or several parasitophorous vacuoles contained up to 16 mobile sporozoites. No oocysts were found in any of the cell types used. VERO cells may be suitable for studies of the interaction between parasite and host cells.
