African trypanosomiasis

African trypanosomiasis is a group of diseases caused by Trypanosoma brucei parasites and transmitted by tsetse flies. It includes human sleeping sickness and animal trypanosomiasis.

Trypanosoma brucei: A parasitic protozoan species whose subspecies cause human and animal African trypanosomiasis. Its subspecies cause the diseases grouped under African trypanosomiasis.
Trypanosoma brucei gambiense: A Trypanosoma brucei subspecies that causes chronic human African trypanosomiasis in western and central Africa. It causes the slower-developing form responsible for most human cases.
Human African trypanosomiasis diagnosis: The process of detecting human African trypanosomes and determining the disease stage. Parasite detection and stage assessment guide treatment choices.
Sleeping sickness: The human disease caused by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense or Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense. This is the human form of African trypanosomiasis.
Tsetse fly: A blood-feeding fly in the genus Glossina that transmits African trypanosomes. It injects parasites while feeding and acquires them from infected hosts.
Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense: A Trypanosoma brucei subspecies that causes acute human African trypanosomiasis in eastern and southern Africa. It causes a faster-progressing human disease than T. b. gambiense.
Human African trypanosomiasis treatment: Medical treatment for sleeping sickness, selected according to parasite subspecies and disease stage. Therapy differs between gambiense and rhodesiense disease and between stages.
Nagana: A livestock disease caused by African trypanosomes, especially in cattle. It is the economically damaging animal form of the disease.
Trypanosome antigenic variation: The repeated switching of surface proteins that helps trypanosomes evade host antibodies. Changing surface coats lets parasites persist in the bloodstream despite immune responses.
Trypanosoma brucei brucei: A Trypanosoma brucei subspecies that causes animal trypanosomiasis but ordinarily cannot infect humans. Unlike the human-infective subspecies, it is usually killed by human serum factors.

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