A research developed in partnership between the Oswaldo Cruz Institute (IOC/Fiocruz) and the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), in the United States, can contribute to improving the diagnosis of Chagas disease.
Caused by the parasite trypanosoma cruzi, the infection is generally silent and can cause serious complications in some patients.
The method validated by scientists facilitates the extraction of DNA from T. cruzi in blood samples. This step is a prerequisite for molecular diagnosis, which detects the parasite genome.
Researchers have validated the use of a robot to extract Trypanosoma cruzi DNA from patients' blood samples. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
Using a robot for DNA extraction, researchers obtained faster, more sensitive and more reliable results compared to the procedure currently used, with silica column kits.
The results were published in the scientific journal International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
“Using the robot makes DNA extraction much easier, faster and reduces the risk of sample contamination. In the tests, we observed greater recovery capacity and greater purity of the DNA extracted with this methodology, which provided increased sensitivity to detect extremely low parasite loads,” highlights the head of the Virology and Molecular Parasitology Laboratory do IOC, Otacilio Moreira, who coordinated the research together with Igor Almeida and Priscila Farani, from Utep.
To extract DNA from a sample, the extraction robot uses magnetic microspheres, which attract this type of molecule. In the extraction column, the DNA binds to the silica molecules, separating it from the other components of the sample.
In addition to this difference in the way DNA is attracted, the robot automates the extraction procedure, eliminating the need for a series of steps that need to be done manually by professionals using the silica column technique.
Otacilio Moreira and Amanda Faier-Pereira highlight the importance of improving the diagnosis of Chagas disease. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
The equipment is already routinely used in the diagnosis of various diseases. However, the methodology had not yet been validated for Chagas disease, in blood samples preserved in guanidine-EDTA solution.
The study included two stages of analysis. In the first, carried out at Utep, the researchers compared the performance of the two methodologies under controlled conditions, using blood samples artificially contaminated in the laboratory with increasingly smaller amounts of parasitic DNA.
In samples with low parasite load, containing genetic material equivalent to less than 1 parasite per ml, the automated extraction technique showed better performance.
In the second stage of analysis, the methodology was validated for diagnosis in blood samples from patients with chronic Chagas disease. These tests were performed in IOC, by the doctoral student of the Postgraduate Program in Parasitic Biology, Amanda Faier-Pereira, with samples provided by the Evandro Chagas National Institute of Infectology (INI/Fiocruz). The analyses showed 100% agreement in the results between the two methodologies.
“Combined, these tests validate the use of the extraction robot for the molecular diagnosis of Chagas disease and indicate that, at extremely low parasite loads, this methodology should be superior to the silica column,” says Otacilio.
Robot automates DNA extraction from samples, simplifying the procedure and offering greater sensitivity in molecular diagnosis. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
The validation of the procedure is another contribution of the IOC on the topic, considering the possibility of incorporating the molecular diagnosis of Chagas disease into the Unified Health System (SUS).
In 2022, the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) granted registration of the Chagas NAT kit, which brings together all the compounds necessary to perform the PCR test to detect the T. cruzi. The tool was developed in partnership between the IOC and the Paraná Institute of Molecular Biology (IBMP).
Automated DNA extraction is a complementary tool that facilitates and improves sample processing for testing with the kit.
The incorporation of tools into the SUS depends on the evaluation of the National Commission for the Incorporation of Technologies into the Unified Health System (Conitec) and the final decision of the Ministry of Health.
Two ongoing studies aim to evaluate, in practice, the benefits of molecular testing to increase the detection of acute cases of Chagas disease.
The Oral Chagas Diagnosis study (DiaChO), led by IOC, focuses on infections caused by ingestion of food contaminated by T. cruzi (such as açaí, bacaba and sugarcane juice). Currently, this is the most common form of transmission of Chagas disease in Brazil.
Developed in the states of Pará, Amapá and Amazonas, the research has the collaboration of the State Health Departments and funding from the Inova F Program.iocroz.
The Cuida Chagas study, led by INI, with the participation of IOC, targets infection in newborns, who can contract the parasite during pregnancy or childbirth, when the mother is infected with T. cruzi.
Conducted in Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia and Paraguay, the study is funded by Unitaid and the Ministry of Health.
“Currently, the diagnosis of these cases is performed by parasitological examination, which depends on observing the parasite in the blood sample using a microscope. Molecular diagnosis is a more sensitive method, capable of detecting parasite fragments, which can broaden the diagnosis. This is essential to promote access to treatment and prevent chronic infections, which can have serious consequences,” reinforces Otacilio, who coordinates the 'DiaChO' study and is part of the 'Cuida Chagas' project.
According to the Ministry of Health, 516 cases of acute Chagas disease were recorded in Brazil in 2023 and estimates indicate that 1,9 to 4,6 million people are chronic carriers of the disease. T. cruzi in the country.
Due to the natural cycle of the disease, many carriers never develop symptoms. However, up to 40% end up presenting complications, such as heart and digestive problems, which develop after years of silent infection.
Treatment of infection in the acute phase is more effective in eliminating the T. cruzi, preventing chronic injuries.
*Article: Farani, PSG, Lopez, J., Faier-Pereira, A., Hasslocher-Moreno, AM, Almeida, IC, Moreira, OC (2025). Utility of Magnetic Bead-Based Automated DNA Extraction to Improve Chagas Disease Molecular Diagnosis. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(3), 937. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26030937
A research developed in partnership between the Oswaldo Cruz Institute (IOC/Fiocruz) and the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), in the United States, can contribute to improving the diagnosis of Chagas disease.
Caused by the parasite trypanosoma cruzi, the infection is generally silent and can cause serious complications in some patients.
The method validated by scientists facilitates the extraction of DNA from T. cruzi in blood samples. This step is a prerequisite for molecular diagnosis, which detects the parasite genome.
Researchers have validated the use of a robot to extract Trypanosoma cruzi DNA from patients' blood samples. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
Using a robot for DNA extraction, researchers obtained faster, more sensitive and more reliable results compared to the procedure currently used, with silica column kits.
The results were published in the scientific journal International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
“Using the robot makes DNA extraction much easier, faster and reduces the risk of sample contamination. In the tests, we observed greater recovery capacity and greater purity of the DNA extracted with this methodology, which provided increased sensitivity to detect extremely low parasite loads,” highlights the head of the Virology and Molecular Parasitology Laboratory do IOC, Otacilio Moreira, who coordinated the research together with Igor Almeida and Priscila Farani, from Utep.
To extract DNA from a sample, the extraction robot uses magnetic microspheres, which attract this type of molecule. In the extraction column, the DNA binds to the silica molecules, separating it from the other components of the sample.
In addition to this difference in the way DNA is attracted, the robot automates the extraction procedure, eliminating the need for a series of steps that need to be done manually by professionals using the silica column technique.
Otacilio Moreira and Amanda Faier-Pereira highlight the importance of improving the diagnosis of Chagas disease. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
The equipment is already routinely used in the diagnosis of various diseases. However, the methodology had not yet been validated for Chagas disease, in blood samples preserved in guanidine-EDTA solution.
The study included two stages of analysis. In the first, carried out at Utep, the researchers compared the performance of the two methodologies under controlled conditions, using blood samples artificially contaminated in the laboratory with increasingly smaller amounts of parasitic DNA.
In samples with low parasite load, containing genetic material equivalent to less than 1 parasite per ml, the automated extraction technique showed better performance.
In the second stage of analysis, the methodology was validated for diagnosis in blood samples from patients with chronic Chagas disease. These tests were performed in IOC, by the doctoral student of the Postgraduate Program in Parasitic Biology, Amanda Faier-Pereira, with samples provided by the Evandro Chagas National Institute of Infectology (INI/Fiocruz). The analyses showed 100% agreement in the results between the two methodologies.
“Combined, these tests validate the use of the extraction robot for the molecular diagnosis of Chagas disease and indicate that, at extremely low parasite loads, this methodology should be superior to the silica column,” says Otacilio.
Robot automates DNA extraction from samples, simplifying the procedure and offering greater sensitivity in molecular diagnosis. Photo: Gutemberg Brito
The validation of the procedure is another contribution of the IOC on the topic, considering the possibility of incorporating the molecular diagnosis of Chagas disease into the Unified Health System (SUS).
In 2022, the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) granted registration of the Chagas NAT kit, which brings together all the compounds necessary to perform the PCR test to detect the T. cruzi. The tool was developed in partnership between the IOC and the Paraná Institute of Molecular Biology (IBMP).
Automated DNA extraction is a complementary tool that facilitates and improves sample processing for testing with the kit.
The incorporation of tools into the SUS depends on the evaluation of the National Commission for the Incorporation of Technologies into the Unified Health System (Conitec) and the final decision of the Ministry of Health.
Two ongoing studies aim to evaluate, in practice, the benefits of molecular testing to increase the detection of acute cases of Chagas disease.
The Oral Chagas Diagnosis study (DiaChO), led by IOC, focuses on infections caused by ingestion of food contaminated by T. cruzi (such as açaí, bacaba and sugarcane juice). Currently, this is the most common form of transmission of Chagas disease in Brazil.
Developed in the states of Pará, Amapá and Amazonas, the research has the collaboration of the State Health Departments and funding from the Inova F Program.iocroz.
The Cuida Chagas study, led by INI, with the participation of IOC, targets infection in newborns, who can contract the parasite during pregnancy or childbirth, when the mother is infected with T. cruzi.
Conducted in Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia and Paraguay, the study is funded by Unitaid and the Ministry of Health.
“Currently, the diagnosis of these cases is performed by parasitological examination, which depends on observing the parasite in the blood sample using a microscope. Molecular diagnosis is a more sensitive method, capable of detecting parasite fragments, which can broaden the diagnosis. This is essential to promote access to treatment and prevent chronic infections, which can have serious consequences,” reinforces Otacilio, who coordinates the 'DiaChO' study and is part of the 'Cuida Chagas' project.
According to the Ministry of Health, 516 cases of acute Chagas disease were recorded in Brazil in 2023 and estimates indicate that 1,9 to 4,6 million people are chronic carriers of the disease. T. cruzi in the country.
Due to the natural cycle of the disease, many carriers never develop symptoms. However, up to 40% end up presenting complications, such as heart and digestive problems, which develop after years of silent infection.
Treatment of infection in the acute phase is more effective in eliminating the T. cruzi, preventing chronic injuries.
*Article: Farani, PSG, Lopez, J., Faier-Pereira, A., Hasslocher-Moreno, AM, Almeida, IC, Moreira, OC (2025). Utility of Magnetic Bead-Based Automated DNA Extraction to Improve Chagas Disease Molecular Diagnosis. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 26(3), 937. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26030937
The non-profit reproduction of the text is allowed as long as the source is cited (Comunicação / Instituto Oswaldo Cruz)
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