C57BL/6 wild-type mice were intraperitoneally infected with
4×106 tdTomato-expressing Colombiana trypomastigotes of
T. cruzi and treated weekly for 7 weeks, with 100 or 500
mg/kg of BNZ, starting at 5 days post-infection. At each indicated time point,
one mouse per group was sacrificed, perfused and heart and skeletal muscle were
dissected, clarified and scanned using LSFM. (A) 3D reconstructions
of heart and skeletal muscle showing amastigote nests (red) in untreated (0
weeks) and treated (8 weeks) mice. Arrows indicate amastigote nests.
(B) Automated quantification of total T. cruzi
amastigote nests in tissue 3D reconstructions. ND = not determined.