Tissue burden of parasite foci and inflammation in wild type and p47phox−/− mice infected by T. cruzi.

C57BL/6 mice (wild type and p47phox−/−) were infected with T. cruzi, as detailed in Materials and Methods. Tissue sections (skeletal muscle, heart) were stained with H&E. In general, we analyzed each tissue-section for >10-microscopic fields (100× magnification), and examined three different skeletal muscle or left ventricular (LV) tissue sections/mouse (4 mice/group) to obtain a semi-quantitative score of parasitic foci (cells filled with parasites). Myocarditis (presence of inflammatory cells) was scored as 0 (absent), 1 (focal or mild with ≤1 foci), 2 (moderate with ≥2 inflammatory foci), 3 (extensive with generalized coalescing of inflammatory foci or disseminated inflammation), and 4 (diffused inflammation with severe tissue necrosis, interstitial edema, and loss of integrity).Tissue burden of parasite foci and inflammation in wild type and p47phox−/− mice infected by T. cruzi.