Conjugates of α-d-Galp-(1→3)-β-d-Galp for the serological diagnosis of Chagas disease

Abstract

Despite the enormous burden imposed by Chagas disease, diagnostic and therapeutic methods still present serious deficiencies. Towards filling this gap, weherein developed a protocol for the chemical synthesis of α-D-Galp-(1→3)-β-DGalp, a major glycotope present on the Trypanosoma cruzi surface coat. Thisdisaccharide was conjugated with different molecular scaffolds and serologicallyevaluated using an in-house enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Ourresults indicate that α-D-Galp-(1→3)-β-D-Galp provides an overall robust andreliable biomarker of T. cruzi infection, with excellent sensitivity and only minorconcerns regarding its potential cross-reactivity with ‘natural’ α-Gal antibodies.These findings indicate that the tools developed here, as well as optimizedversions derived from them, should have a positive impact on the diagnosis andclinical management of Chagas disease and on the identification and/or clinicalvalidation of novel drug/vaccine candidates for the treatment of T. cruzi infections.