An alternative method to establish an early acute ocular toxoplasmosis model for experimental tests.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To provide a simple alternative acute ocular toxoplasmosis model with great reproducibility for experimental tests that demand monitoring of the ocular lesion. METHODS: ME49-wt and ME49-GFP tachyzoites from cell culture were used to infect male C57BL6 mice by intraperitoneal injection. B1 expression by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay was used to detect the presence of T. gondii in ocular tissue at the beginning of the infection. Fluorescence microscopy and histopathology analysis were carried out to assess the evolution of the acute infection up to 20 days in both eyes of infected mice. RESULTS: All mice infected with the 104 tachyzoites showed B1 expression in the retina of both eyes, in the RPE (retinal pigment epithelium), and choroid structures, after 5 days of infection. Tachyzoites of the ME49-GFP strain were easily detected by fluorescence microscopy in the retina tissue of mice after 5 days post-infection. After 20 days, mice inflammatory cell infiltrates and a disorganized morphology of the retinal laminar architecture were observed. CONCLUSION: Infection of C57BL6 mice via intraperitoneal with 104 tachyzoites of the ME49-GFP strain from cell culture is a suitable model for acute ocular toxoplasmosis. This model has great reproducibility in establishing the ocular lesion since day 5 post-infection. This model can be suitable for experimental tests of chemotherapy and the investigation of the role of the immune response on the development of uveitis.