IL2RA
Encyclopedia
Interleukin-2 receptor alpha chain is a protein
that in humans is encoded by the IL2RA gene
.
Infection by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi
causes Chagas disease
, characterized by a reduction in the amount of IL2RA expressed on the surface of immune cells. This leads to chronic immune suppression, becoming increasingly severe over the course of many years and ultimately resulting in death if left untreated.
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
that in humans is encoded by the IL2RA gene
Gene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
.
Infection by the protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi
Trypanosoma cruzi
Trypanosoma cruzi is a species of parasitic euglenoid trypanosomes. This species causes the trypanosomiasis diseases in humans and animals in America...
causes Chagas disease
Chagas disease
Chagas disease is a tropical parasitic disease caused by the flagellate protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi. T. cruzi is commonly transmitted to humans and other mammals by an insect vector, the blood-sucking insects of the subfamily Triatominae most commonly species belonging to the Triatoma, Rhodnius,...
, characterized by a reduction in the amount of IL2RA expressed on the surface of immune cells. This leads to chronic immune suppression, becoming increasingly severe over the course of many years and ultimately resulting in death if left untreated.